


Paperboy

by x_minx



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Angst, First Meetings, Fluff, High School AU, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Modern AU, Slow Burn, minho's a runner, minor brenda/teresa, newt's a paperboy, they're huge dorks, whoops this totally turned into a slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-17
Updated: 2019-10-11
Packaged: 2020-09-05 20:07:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 24,103
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20279074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/x_minx/pseuds/x_minx
Summary: He was brought back to reality by a newspaper smacking him in the side of the head."Hey, watch it!" Minho scolded."I said to watch out," the paperboy respondedWhat a dick, Minho thought as the boy biked away.





	1. Paperboy

**Author's Note:**

> I came up with this idea randomly one day and have been obsessed with it ever since. It has now become this. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The school year has started, and Minho's (not) ready, but suddenly a cute paperboy appears out of the blue!

The chill morning air ruffled Minho’s hair as he stepped out into it, closing the door behind him. He took a deep breath in, and could tell fall was well on its way. Yellow had begun to sink into the trees, spotting leaves with familiar colors and pushing them to the ground. Minho stuck his ear buds in and queued up his workout playlist. Sticking his phone in the pocket of his shorts with finality, he took off from his porch at a jog. He did this every Sunday morning. School had just started up again, and Minho was beginning his junior year of high school. He’d heard many great and terrible things about junior year, but as usual, he was just throwing himself into it blindly and hoping for the best, because flying by the seat of his pants was just his style. When he thought about things beforehand he just ended up screwing them up more.

He took his normal route through the neighborhood, picking up and slowing his pace intermittently. Birds sang overhead, flying between branches. Minho got lost in the scenery, the music he was listening to taking him to an entirely different world. As he turned onto his street, nearing his house again, he thought he heard a muffled shout. He frowned, slowly being pulled from his day dreaming, when he was suddenly jerked back to reality by something hitting him in the side of the head. He pulled an ear bud out, looking toward the source of the object.

“Hey, watch it!” He scolded, still not sure who it was meant for, when he spotted a lanky figure on a bike.

“I said to watch out!” The red head on wheels responded. There were many rolled up newspapers in the basket of his bike, and Minho realized he must be the paperboy. He also noticed his British accent.

“Still, watch where you’re throwing, man!” He retorted, scowling at the scrawny boy looking back at him.

“Watch where you’re walking!” The paperboy turned his head back to where he was going, pushing the pedals harder to get up a slope. Minho just shook his head. _What a dick_, he thought, watching the retreating figure in a beige sweater continue to toss papers to doorsteps.

That week at school was normal, teachers beginning to give out heavier assignments now that the year was getting into full swing. Minho had the same free period as Thomas and Chuck, which was a huge relief, as last year he’d been alone. He ate lunch with his usual group, which included Thomas, Teresa, Chuck, and Brenda. Chuck and Brenda were having an enthusiastic conversation about the robotics club and the new people in it this year, Teresa listening intently, while Thomas’s attention was entirely focused on his slightly soggy sandwich. Minho was just staring off into space, half hearing what the others were saying. Suddenly, a flash of orange caught his eye, and he looked just in time to see a lanky red head disappear around a corner. _That’s strange_, Minho thought, _he looks just like_-

“Minho? Hello? Anyone in there?” Teresa was waving her hands in his face.

“Huh? What?” Minho blinked. Brenda snorted.

“You see a cute guy?” She asked.

“Pfft, no,” Minho scoffed, going back to his shitty school lunch pizza. Brenda cocked a brow, but didn’t say anything else.

The next Sunday, Minho was out on his morning run, when he saw the red headed paperboy again. This time he saw him coming, and they made eye contact for a moment as they approached each other, though on opposite sides of the street.

“Hey, catch!” The paperboy called out before tossing a bundled up newspaper across the street towards Minho. Minho caught it, only taking his eyes off the boy for a second.

“Nice throw,” he gave him a sly smile.

“Thanks,” the paperboy chuckled, watching Minho until he couldn’t turn his head back anymore. Minho watched him go, taking his appearance in fully, or as much as one could from a growing distance. Short, dusty red hair, slightly pointed nose, small figure, and he was wearing that same beige sweater. Long, slender fingers gripped the bike handles, grabbing and throwing papers with ease, balance never faltering. Minho laughed a little to himself, unable to keep the thought that the boy’s accent was cute out of his head. Maybe he’ll be seeing him more often.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to my personal gay hell. This first chapter's pretty short, but others will be longer! I already have some others done, I'm just polishing them up, and adding a bit before posting. Hope you enjoy!


	2. Cute Runner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Newt's getting settled into his new routine when Minho flings himself into his life.

Newt huffed a sigh of relief at the bell, signaling the end of another school day. It was only his third week of junior year, and he was already tired of it. The teachers didn’t hesitate to give full homework loads here. At least they’re better teachers than his old school. He took his time gathering his papers into his binder, shoving it all in his backpack, and slinging it over his shoulders. He winced as he stood on his bum leg. The pain wasn’t too bad, more annoying than anything.

Newt made his way out of the school’s back entrance to where his bike was stuck in a bike rack by the track. He heard shouts from the track as he wiggled his bike out of its jumble. He looked up to see runners setting up hurdles on the far side, and a small group sprinting on the side closest to him, followed by a larger group of joggers. He was about to go on his way when he noticed a familiar figure among the runners. He realized it was the runner boy he’d hit with a newspaper a couple weeks ago. Something about the way he ran had him fixated, not wanting to look away. _Damn, he’s fast_, Newt thought. And _damn,_ he’s hot. He took in the boy’s bouncy hair, his full lips, his collarbones exposed by his lose shirt. Oh shit, he’s _hot_. The runner boy looked back at him.

“Hey, Newt!” Someone called from behind right as disaster struck, so Newt didn’t have time to freak out at being caught staring at the cute runner. He turned to see Alby walking towards him.

“Hey, Alby,” Newt sighed, thanking his lucky stars at the convenient turn of events. “What’s up?”

“Just wanted to see how you’re doing. New school and all,” Alby said, stopping in front of him, a binder tucked under his arm.

“I’m good. I actually understand half the shit the teachers are saying, and the people seem a lot nicer.”

“Good. Let me know if you need any help with homework or anything.”

“Will do.”

“Alright, I’ll let you be off now, but wear a helmet next time you decide to ride your bike!” Alby began walking away again.

“Sure thing, mom.” Newt walked his bike away from the crowds of students.

“I am not your mother.”

“You basically are at this point.”

“Goodbye, Newt,” Alby turned away fully. Newt laughed, swinging a leg over his bike, and taking one last glance at the track before departing. The runner boy was stretching, seemingly preparing for a sprint. He lifted his arms over his head and his shirt slipped up, revealing some of his back-

Newt began biking away at top speed. Not today, gay thoughts, not today.

That Sunday, Newt got up at ungodly hours of the morning as usual, and gathered a hellish amount of newspapers to shove into the basket of his bike. He hated getting up early for school already, so having to do it on the weekend too was even more sucky. If he didn’t need the extra money, he would’ve slept until three in afternoon for all he cares.

Before he could get to caught up in his head, Newt embarked on his usual paper delivery journeys, and had nearly forgotten about the cute runner boy entirely until he was diving in front of his bike.

“Hey! Wait!” The boy yelled, jumping in front of him and waving his arms like a maniac. Newt tugged his handle brakes violently, planting a foot on the ground.

“Bloody hell, what is wrong with you?” He scowled at him.

“Um, well, I-I’m Minho, nice to meet you,” the boy held out his hand. Newt eyed it skeptically, hesitating before shaking it.

“Newt.”

“Newt. Wonderful. Uh, do you go here? To school I mean?”

“Yeah, what’s it to you?” Newt raised an eyebrow at him.

“Oh, I thought I saw you. Are you new here?”

“Yeah, just moved in.”

“That would explain why I haven’t seen you before, I’ve lived here my whole life. Wait, how do you know Alby?”

“You know him too? We were friends in middle school.”

“Oh, cool!” Minho just stood there for a second, looking at Newt, who continued frowning.

“So, is that all you stopped me for?” Minho blinked.

“Oh, yeah, I guess,” he stepped out of Newt’s way.

“Jesus,” Newt murmured, shaking his head. “That was really dangerous you know, you could’ve killed us both.”

“Danger’s my middle name,” Minho smirked, shooting him finger guns as he backpedaled away. Newt scoffed slightly, watching him go. _What an idiot_, he thought. _A cute idiot though_.

He shook his head before getting back on his bike and continuing with his route. It’s the beginning of a new school year, he needs to focus. Now is not the time to be exceedingly gay. He sighed and turned a corner, tossing a paper as he went.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little did he know, his life was about to change...   
Another short one, but more coming soon! Hope you're not bored already, things will speed up pretty fast from here on out. Comment your thoughts!


	3. New Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minho forces his friendship upon Newt. Newt doesn't seem to mind.

Minho was determined to find Newt at school that week. He hadn’t noticed him in any of his classes, but he barely noticed anyone in any of his classes, so it could still be possible. On his way from history to chemistry, he passed by a row of lockers and spotted the person he was looking for. Newt opened a locker and shoved a notebook in it, then started rummaging around for something else. Minho walked up so the only thing between them was the open door of the locker. He propped his elbow up on the wall, leaning on it seductively (at least he hoped it was seductive). Newt slammed the locker door shut, then jumped, not expecting to see Minho.

“Hey,” Minho smirked.

“Jesus, you scared the shit out of me,” Newt replied, running a hand through his hair. Minho laughed a bit.

“How you doin’?” He asked.

“Fine, up until you got here,” Newt retorted.

“Mean,” Minho pouted. Newt started to walk away, but Minho followed him, bouncing up to his side. “What’s your next class?”

“Physics.”

“Ah, up this way, right? I have chemistry in that same area. I’ll walk you there.”

“Such a gentleman.” Newt acted annoyed, but couldn’t help feeling joy from having a hot guy follow him around. Plus, he seemed sincere.

“You a junior?” Minho continued to pester him.

“Yes. You?”

“Me too. Do you have a free period?”

“Yup, third period. I’m assuming you have one as well?” Newt raised his eyebrows at Minho, who looked like he’d just won the lottery.

“Mine’s third period too! Come to the cafeteria tomorrow during it, I’ll introduce you to my friends. We always hang out there and do homework.” Minho pointed and gestured as he talked, something glowing in his eyes. Newt smirked.

“Alright, sure. I don’t really know anyone here anyways,” he said as they approached their classrooms.

“Great,” Minho started splitting off towards his classroom. “See ya, paperboy!” He gave him finger guns as he walked backwards, thumbs tucked under his backpack straps.

“Don’t call me that,” Newt frowned. Minho just smiled before turning and ducking into his classroom with the last few people before the door closed. Newt shook his head, smiling. That boy was certainly energetic.

The next day at third period, Minho was practically skipping to the cafeteria. Thomas and Chuck were already sitting at their usual table, spreading papers and notebooks over the surface. They gave lazy greetings as Minho approached.

“Why do you look so happy, you get laid or something?” Thomas asked, pulling out his school-issued ipad. Minho scoffed.

“No, I do not need sex to be happy. In fact, I’ll have you know, I made a new friend.” Minho slung his backpack off onto the seat next to him and started pulling things out.

“Okay but did they go willingly, or did you forcibly subject them to your Minho shenanigans?” Chuck gave him a look, and Thomas nodded along, muttering “he has a point” quietly.

“No, I invited him, and he accepted, and he should be here any minute,” Minho returned the snooty look.

“Is that him?” Thomas leaned to the side to see around Minho. Minho turned and saw that it was, in fact, the friend in question.

“Newt!” He called out, raising an arm to wave him over. Newt walked towards him, looking a little nervous, and Minho noticed for the first time that he walked with a slight limp. He decided not to ask about it though, figuring it would be rude since they’d practically just met. “Take a seat,” Minho moved his backpack to the floor, then patted the seat next to him. Newt obliged, removing his own backpack and setting it on the floor between his feet. “Thomas, Chuck, meet Newt. Newt, meet Thomas and Chuck.”

“Hello,” Chuck gave a friendly wave, and Thomas smiled.

“Hi,” Newt nodded in return.

“We’ve heard so much about you, Newt,” Chuck put his fingertips together like a villain in a cartoon.

“Ah, yes, did Minho tell you about how he nearly killed us both?” Newt put his forearms on the table. Thomas sputtered in laughter.

“He _what_?” Chuck looked at Minho, incredulous, but giggling all the same.

“I did _not_!” Minho retaliated, shooting Newt a glare. Newt smirked menacingly.

“He dove right in front of my bike like a maniac.”

“Of course he did,” Chuck shook his head, looking back down at the notebook in front of him.

“Classic Minho,” Thomas replied, still snorting.

“Shut up,” Minho reached out and pushed Thomas’s face playfully. Thomas swatted it away, and Newt found himself laughing with them. “He’s the one who hit me in the head with a newspaper!” Chuck and Thomas laughed harder at this, now giving Newt incredulous looks.

“It was an accident!” Newt retorted, trying and failing to scowl at Minho.

“Surrreeeee,” Minho looked back at him, and bumped his shoulder with his own.

Although they barely got anything done, Minho considered that free period a success. He learned a lot about Newt. He was really good at math, he hated history, and loved writing. He used to do track, but stopped because of an injury. Minho assumed that same injury was the reason he limped, but didn’t pry further, not wanting to push any boundaries. He couldn’t stop himself from wondering, though. _How did that happen? Why didn’t it heal properly? Did he not get the right treatment for it?_ He had to stop himself from thinking about it too much, just running into more questions he couldn’t ask.

He also discovered that he lives in the neighborhood he delivers papers in, which means he must live relatively close to Minho. Newt was smiling as they packed up their things. Minho couldn’t stop staring. He noticed for the first time that he had some faint freckles. And when he smiled, he had dimples. He kept noticing more things about the boy. _How can someone be so adorable?_ Newt waved goodbye to Thomas and Chuck as they headed off towards their respective classrooms. Before he left, Minho spoke.

“Hey, what class do you have next, before lunch?” He asked.

“History, about halfway down B hall,” Newt replied. Minho thought for a moment.

“Meet me at the entry of that hall before lunch. I’ll introduce you to the rest of my friends,” he began to walk off.

“I’ll be there,” Newt nodded, still smiling.

“You better be, paperboy,” Minho winked.

“I told you not to call me that!” Newt scolded, but he was laughing. Minho turned away and kept walking, biting his lip. _Damn, I’m falling hard, aren’t I?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow Min your gay ass is ALREADY head over heels for paperboy. Don't worry it seems like he might like you too...  
Thanks for reading! The comments I've already gotten made me super happy. I hope you continue to enjoy! Let me know what you think :)


	4. Something Good

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Newt's new friends invite out for a night out. He's happy in more ways than one.

Newt felt like he was floating when he left school that day. He’d met Minho’s friends and learned quite a bit about them. Thomas was a sophomore, one of the best sprinters on the track team, and extremely reckless (he heard snippets of stories about pranks he and Chuck pulled, and saw some funny videos of him just being an idiot in general). Chuck was a freshman, and the group claimed to have adopted him as their child. He had that kind of good-hearted dummy personality, but was actually very smart, and was two years ahead in math. He was also in the robotics club that met after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Teresa was a sophomore, another track star, and she and Thomas were childhood friends. She’d also dated Thomas in middle school before they both realized they were gay and broke up. Brenda was a junior, and did robotics with Chuck. She also had a crush on Thomas for a bit before realizing that she was also, in fact, a lesbian.

Newt loved Minho’s friends, but he found himself most fixated on the slightly taller boy himself. He learned that he lived in the same neighborhood as him, and that his family was rich but he didn’t have a very good relationship with his parents. He was good at history, loved science, hated math, and loved getting super invested in books, TV shows, and music, among other things. Newt also noticed the way he fidgeted with everything, how he bit his tongue or lip when he was focusing, and how he put his whole heart into everything. Newt didn’t even realize what this boy was doing to him until Minho bumped his shoulder with his own for the third time, and Newt had to remind himself to breathe (again).

Newt spent his free period and ate lunch with Minho’s group all week, and enjoyed it more every time. On Friday, when he sat down between Minho and Teresa at lunch, they greeted him like an old friend, and his chest filled with a warmth he hadn’t felt in a while.

“Yo, guys, I have an idea,” Brenda held her hands out, palms down, addressing the group. “Tonight at 6:30, they’re playing star wars at that old drive in theater-” Everyone gasped. “-And we should totally go.” Everyone was already hollering in excitement, and making plans. Newt stayed quiet, unsure if they intended for him to be a part of this excursion. He’d only been hanging out with them for a week after all, they probably wouldn’t want him intruding on their time together.

“Which movie?” Chuck asked.

“A new hope,” Brenda responded.

“Ah, yes, that’s the best one,” Thomas fist pumped.

“Um, no, the fifth one is,” Teresa contradicted, “but anyways, we should totally go to the diner beforehand.” More agreements and anticipatory comments sounded, and Newt sighed, thankful that the general high school lunchroom commotion covered it up so no one else heard.

“I can drive some people, but we definitely won’t all fit in Jorge’s car,” Brenda supplied.

“I can take Newt,” Minho offered, putting an arm around Newt’s shoulders. Newt jumped slightly at the sudden contact, and looked at Minho. “Since we live so close,” Minho winked at him, and he just gave him an unamused look, then looked away to hide his blush.

“Great! Then I can take everyone else,” Brenda clasped her hands together, looking very pleased with herself. “This is gonna be so fun, we haven’t hung out altogether since summer!” They all continued chatting, now buzzing with excitement for the night ahead. Newt was still surprised, and a little confused, but his chest filled up again with that vaguely familiar warmth. He was surrounded by people he felt at home with, and they’d invited him to spend time with them like he was one of their own. Plus, Minho offered to drive him, and who could turn down that offer?

Though he still didn’t quite know what to make of it, and was sure there were plenty other reasons to worry about the situation at hand, Newt just smiled. He was a little overwhelmed, but it was all good feelings because he felt he’d made good new friends and _Minho still had his arm around him what_-

“I’ll pick you up at 5:15, that okay?” Newt was jolted from his haze by Minho talking right at him, like right in his face, god they were so close.

“Uh, y-yeah, sounds good,” Newt forced out a response. “You know where I live, right?”

“Yeah, I saw you once when I was running.” Newt huffed out a laugh.

“Of course you did.” Minho scoffed playfully.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” He wasn’t expecting a response, which Newt was ever grateful for because he had forgotten how to speak, unable to help imagining other situations in which they’d be this close, Minho’s breath on his cheek-

Newt’s trance was once again interrupted, this time by the sound of the bell ringing.

“Lunch is already over? That was fast,” Chuck frowned, putting away his leftover food.

“Time flies when you’re having fun,” Thomas shrugged, then grabbed Chuck’s discarded jacket and ran away.

“Wh- Thomas, you bitch,” Chuck grabbed his things and quickly followed him. Minho chuckled and shook his head, releasing Newt and standing up. Newt was a little disappointed, but also glad because the fog in his mind went with him. He gathered his things and stood as well, moving in the direction of his next class.

“5:15!” Minho pointed at him as he walked off his own way.

“Got it,” Newt saluted sarcastically, missing the adoring smirk Minho sent his way.

Newt couldn’t stop smiling as he got ready that evening. He felt that this could really be the start of something good. He hadn’t had something good like this since… well, since middle school. Since before Alby moved away. Since before… the incident. The incident that caused his leg injury.

He remembered Spring evenings sitting on the roof of their shitty middle school, drinking soda, tossing rocks and sticks at birds to make them fly. Talking with Alby, Winston, Frypan, and Zart. (No one knew if Frypan was his real name, and nobody dared to ask). He’d felt loved. He’d felt like they were the only ones who cared. The ones he could really trust. Then it happened. Then Alby moved away. Then Winston and Zart just kind of… drifted away. Then Frypan’s sister got jumped and he and his family left. Newt felt a sting in his eyes.

He shook his head. He’s not going to think about that right now. This was going to be a great night. He pulled his shoes on and started tying them. He froze when he heard footsteps come up and stop in the doorway to his room. He should’ve closed the door.

“Going somewhere?” His father said. Newt took a deep breath. He refused to look at him.

“Yes.” He could smell the alcohol on his father’s breath from where he sat on the edge of his bed. He tried not to wrinkle his nose in disgust.

“Where?” Newt wanted to spit at him. _Like you care_.

“Downtown.” He looked in the mirror and ran his hands through his hair.

“Gonna go pick up some hot chicks?” Newt rolled his eyes.

“I’m going out with friends.”

“Friends, eh?” Newt moved to leave the room, but his dad blocked the exit. He forced himself to look him in the eye. He was wasted. The rumble of a vehicle approaching, then stopping and turning off sounded right outside.

“That’s probably my ride,” Newt said, not breaking eye contact with the man in front of him.

“You know it’s dangerous to get rides from strangers.” His dad looked down on him condescendingly. “You could get hurt.” _Stop acting like you care_. Newt seethed.

“They’re not strangers, they’re my friends. They’re good people.” _Unlike you._ There was a knock at the front door. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.” _I have things to do other than sit on my ass and get wasted. _His father narrowed his eyes, but he stumbled to the side nonetheless. Newt strode past him as quick as possible without running, taking a deep breath. He was gonna have a good night no matter what the universe threw at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh oh, what's up with Newt's dad...  
Thanks so much for reading, I hope you're enjoying! Updates might not always be this fast, but I'm gonna try my best to whip this out before school starts, which is September 4th for me (aaaahhhh help).  
I hope you're enjoying! I love my gay babies. Next time, the gang goes out and has a blast!


	5. Take Me to the Riot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang goes out! *confetti*

Minho twisted and turned in the mirror, running a hand through his hair for the umpteenth time. He’d tried on just about all of the jackets he owned. _Why am I so nervous?_ He thought. He’s just going out with friends, right? He shouldn’t be so worried about his looks. Except for the fact that he was going to be picking up Newt, by himself, and Newt’s never been out with him. He’s gotta make a good impression. But still, it wasn’t that big of a deal. The motorcycle was bound to impress him, but then it couldn’t really be that impressive if the guy driving it looks like an idiot. Minho groaned, looking at the clock. If he didn’t leave now, he was gonna be late. He settled on a denim jacket, giving himself one last look in the mirror.

“You got this,” he said to himself, trying to look as charming as possible. “Oh, jeez,” he sighed, then grabbed his keys and his bag and headed out.

Minho felt more confident as he pulled up to Newt’s house and got off his motorcycle. He took off his helmet and attempted to smooth down his hair. He took one last deep breath before marching up to Newt’s door, and ringing the doorbell. It only took a moment before the door opened, and all confidence Minho had built up goes out the window.

“Hey,” Newt greeted, biting his lip nervously. Minho just stared for a moment. Newt wore a flannel, a loose band T-shirt, ripped jeans, classic chucks, and an old, faded baseball cap, and Minho couldn’t help thinking that he looked _cute as fuck._

“Hey,” Minho forced out. God, Newt was so adorable in that hat. “Nice hat.”

“Thanks,” Newt reached up and adjusted his hat, which was also _extremely cute_; Minho was going to die. “Nice jacket.”

“Thanks,” Minho internally fist pumped. They made eye contact, and just stared for a moment longer than normal friends probably would. Newt blushed and quickly looked down, clearing his throat. “Uh, you ready to go?” Minho asked, averting his eyes for a moment.

“Yeah.” Newt stepped fully out of his house, closing the door behind him. Minho turned and walked to his motorcycle, then gestured dramatically, showing off his ride. Newt followed, then stopped, eyes wide.

“What, you surprised?” Minho raised his eyebrows playfully.

“Honestly, yeah,” Newt smirked.

“Come on, you didn’t immediately peg me as a cool biker dude?”

“Nah, more of a dumb jock.” Minho scoffed.

“Rude. Not even like, jock with a sweet motorcycle?” Newt shrugged. Minho shook his head, “wow, I’ve gotta admit, I overestimated you, paperboy.” Minho swung a leg over his bike.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Newt laughed as he stepped closer. Minho tossed him his extra helmet.

“Hop on,” Minho jerked his head slightly towards the space behind him as he slipped on his own helmet.

“Um,” Newt hesitated, biting his lip, holding his helmet to his chest. “I’ve never done this before.”

“Well then, you’re in for a treat! Just sit behind me and lean forward, then hold on tight!” Minho smiled. He loved riding his motorcycle, and was excited to share it with Newt. He’d taken Thomas for a ride on it once, only to discover that Thomas did _not_ like things like that (he’d cried a little). Newt seemed like the kind of person who would enjoy thrills like this, though. Newt smiled, put a little more at ease by Minho’s confidence. He took off his hat and tucked it into his flannel before putting his helmet on, then he gingerly stepped right next to the motorcycle. He paused once more before committing. He swung a leg over the seat, and plopped down right behind Minho. Minho took in a sharp breath as Newt leaned against him and hugged his waist. He was glad he had the helmet to cover his face so Newt couldn’t see how red it was.

“Ready?” Minho asked, hoping the waver in his voice went unnoticed.

“Yeah,” Newt breathed, hoping Minho couldn’t feel his heart beating crazy fast. He could feel the muscles in his friend’s back against his chest, and were those abs under his hands? It did nothing to help his already fluttering heart. Minho started up the bike with a rumble, and Newt gasped, clutching onto him tighter.

“Here we go!” Minho sent them off, hoping driving would distract him from the heat spreading through his body from wear Newt touched him.

“Holy shit!” Newt watched the ground whiz by them as they steadily accelerated. They turned on to the main road and cruised past houses and trees, gradually changing to stores and apartment buildings as they entered the town. _This isn’t so bad,_ Newt thought. In fact, it was actually pretty fun. He laughed, watching a bird fly overhead. Minho smiled at the sound, his chest swelling with a warmth he’d never felt before. They continued down the calm streets until they reached an open field of grass where a few other cars were already parked in front of a makeshift stage with a projector set up, presumably for the movie. Minho pulled up to the front of the lot, slowing the bike to a stop. They hopped off, taking off their helmets.

“That was awesome!” Newt laughed, and Minho couldn’t help staring as he shook his hair out, smiling like he just got a puppy. _He looks like an angel_, Minho thought.

“Glad you enjoyed it,” he said before his gay thoughts could consume him entirely. “The others should be here soon,” Minho hung his and Newt’s helmets on the handlebars of his motorcycle, then leaned against it while they waited. Newt giggled a little more to himself, scratching the back of his neck and looking down. “What’s so funny?” Minho asked.

“Nothing,” Newt met his gaze, still grinning. They held eye contact for a small, intimate moment that felt way longer than it really was. They both startled at a series of short honks from the road, and looked to see Brenda pulling into the lot in a polished, vintage sedan, Blitzkrieg Bop by Ramones blasting. Thomas was doing a funky dance in the passenger seat wearing ridiculous sunglasses. Brenda parked next to Newt and Minho, then she, Thomas, Chuck, and Teresa all climbed out.

“Wassup, bitches,” Thomas posed dramatically, then yelped when Brenda used her jacket to smack his ass before putting it on. They greeted each other, exchanging fist bumps, jokes, and friendly shoulder punches.

“Well, Newt, did you survive Minho’s motorcycle excursion?” Teresa asked.

“Yeah, actually it was quite fun,” Newt replied with a smile.

“God, I just don’t understand you people,” Thomas sighed, putting away his silly sunglasses while Brenda laughed at him and Minho rolled his eyes.

“He rode on the motorcycle once and cried,” Chuck said, not looking up from his phone.

“Oh,” Newt raised his eyebrows at Thomas.

“It was terrifying!” He defended himself.

“It’s fun!” Brenda countered.

“Oh, have you gone?” Newt asked.

“Yeah, I drive my godfather’s sometimes. This is technically his car too, but we just share both at this point,” Brenda answered.

“Brenda’s our designated driver since she’s the oldest,” Teresa explained. Newt nodded along.

“Anyways, let’s go to the diner already, I’m starving,” Chuck grabbed Minho’s arm and began walking off, dragging him along. Minho grabbed Newt’s arm, shouting “woooo, food!”. Newt laughed and let himself get pulled away, the others following close behind.

They reached the old fashioned diner hidden between stores and cafés, the sign faded. It had a nice atmosphere, red and white checkered tablecloths, 80s music playing softly, a smell like freshly baked bread wafting through the air. A waiter came out and sat them at a large booth. Minho already knew what he would get, but his eyes kept drifting over to the lanky redhead next to him. Newt scoured his menu, frown deepening with each item.

“You need some help there, buddy?” Minho asked, leaning towards Newt so he could see his menu.

“How do I choose? Everything looks so good!” Newt continued to stare down the menu with such intensity, Minho thought it might burst into flames at any moment.

“Well, we all usually get the same things, and eat off each other’s plates, so if you want you can get something different from everyone else and try everything,” Minho offered. Newt’s face lit up, and Minho couldn’t help but smile at how cute it was.

“Perfect.” Newt looked at Minho like he’d just discovered the answers to the universe. Minho suddenly noticed how close they were, faces hidden behind the menu. His heart stuttered, their noses were almost touching-

“You guys telling secrets back there?” Teresa reached across the table and used her fork to pull the menu down from where Newt was holding it in front of his and Minho’s faces.

“Yes, he was just telling me about the time he crushed up smarties and snorted them,” Newt shot back, face blank.

“I what?” Minho frowned, and Teresa laughed.

“Yup, that sounds like him,” she said.

“Excuse me, I’m not _that_ much of an idiot,” Minho interjected.

“Yes you are,” Newt, Teresa, and Thomas (who’d apparently been listening) all said at the same time. After a short pause, they all burst into laughter.

“Wow, I’m offended,” Minho put his hand over his heart for dramatics, though he couldn’t hold back his own laughter. Newt snorted, and pressed his forehead against Minho’s shoulder, eyes squeezed shut with mirth. They ordered their food, told stories and jokes and played hangman on their napkins, you know, like normal teenagers do. While they waited for their food, a familiar song began playing over the faint speakers.

“Oh, I love this song!” Brenda bobbed along with the music. A few “me too”s sounded, and they sang along with the chorus. “I’ll stop the world and melt with you…”

“But why are we melting though,” Newt deadpanned, slouching against the backrest.

“Just enjoy the music Newt. It’s poetry,” Chuck did the ok sign with both hands.

“How can I enjoy it when it’s causing me to have an existential crisis-“

“Shh,” Minho held his finger to Newt’s lips. “Hush child. It’s art.” Newt acted unaffected, but on the inside he was definitely feeling the jolt Minho’s finger against his lips sent through him. He frowned at it, but went cross-eyed trying to look at it, and Minho laughed before removing his finger and going back to normal conversation with the others. Newt had to take a second to steady himself before returning to reality.

About an hour after they arrived at the diner, they left it, heading back towards the drive in theater, sharing milkshakes and making fun of each other’s eating habits. They climbed up on Brenda’s car while they waited for the movie to start. Newt sat between Minho and Thomas on the roof, holding a vanilla milkshake. Thomas was very focused trying to braid Teresa’s hair, tongue sticking out of his mouth, while she sat on the hood in front of him with her arm around Chuck. Brenda slid up next to Chuck, saying “Y’all better not ding up my car.”

“Don’t worry we won’t flail around too much,” Newt replied as he went to take another sip of his milkshake. Minho leaned in and stole it though, so he flicked his nose, which made him squeak and gave Newt just enough time and space to steal it back.

“Can’t say that I won’t when Han Solo comes on,” Minho said.

“Oh yeah, never mind, same,” Newt agreed.

“If you’re gonna be extremely gay, get off my car,” Brenda ordered.

“Well, in that case, you should get off before they show princess Leia,” Chuck quipped.

“Good point,” Brenda conceded.

“News flash, we’re all gay,” Teresa said, tapping through her phone. Newt and Minho continued fighting for their milkshake, and Thomas looked very proud of himself as he tied off Teresa’s braid. Soon enough, the movie started playing and they all clapped and cheered, screamed at the characters, and held each other when they were about to fall off the car from being too dramatic. When the movie was over, whoever had control of the speakers started playing music. They all got up and started dancing, and Newt joined in even though he didn’t recognize the song. Teresa whipped her hair around, singing passionately. Newt laughed as Minho spun him around, then tried to dip him, but tripped, and sent them both tumbling to the ground.

“You a terrible dancer,” Newt managed from under the other boy.

“I’m not usually this bad, I swear,” Minho replied, trying and failing to get up. His chest leaped when he suddenly imagined other situations in which he might be on top of Newt, missing how red Newt’s face was in his struggle to get up.

“Jeez Minho, you just met Newt and you’re already making moves on him?” Brenda said, sneakily snapping a picture.

“What? No! This was an accident!” Minho retorted. Newt laughed harder, his head pressed back against the ground. _God, he’s so pretty_, Minho thought, but quickly suppressed it since he was already taking too long to get up. He stood and brushed himself off, then offered a hand to Newt, who was just recovering from his laughing fit. The song playing faded out as Minho helped the red head up, and another started playing.

“Oh my god, I love this song!” Newt and Brenda said at the same time.

“Me too!” Minho replied, “didn’t I show you this song?”

“Yeah, I think you did.” Brenda answered, before grabbing Thomas’s hands and swinging their arms back and forth. They jumped up and down with their hands in the air at the chorus, singing along. As the music died out, and a more mellow song came on, they caught their breath.

“We should probably go soon, it’s dark, and my mom was very clear about me being home by ten,” Chuck said.

“Yeah, my parents don’t want me out late either,” Teresa chimed in.

“Aw, come on, it’s not even late!” Minho teased.

“Trust me Minho, you do not want to test my mother.” Chuck gave him a pointed look.

“Alright,” Minho shrugged. “I’ll take you home,” he smiled at Newt.

“Thanks,” Newt smiled back.

They said their goodbyes, then Thomas, Chuck, and Teresa piled into Brenda’s car and drove off. The remaining two watched them go.

“You ready to go?” Minho asked, grabbing their helmets.

“Yeah,” Newt replied.

They arrived at Newt’s house, coming to a stop and laughing about the deer they’d seen in the street and swerved to avoid, nearly tipping over in the process. They climbed off the motorcycle and slipped their helmets over their heads, giggles still slipping out into the still night air.

“Whew, what a wild ride,” Minho chuckled, walking Newt to his door.

“It always is with you,” Newt replied through giggles, wiping away a tear. Minho blushed at that, thankful that it was dark enough to hide it. “Thanks,” Newt continued.

“Yeah, any time! I never have anything to do, so I can always give you a ride anywhere.”

“No, seriously,” Newt looked at the other boy, a small smile still in place. “Thank you. For everything. I haven’t had that much fun in… a really long time.” Minho smiled back, eyes softening.

“No problem.” They continued staring at each other for a moment too long, lost in the other’s gaze. Newt suddenly came back to reality, looking down. Minho cleared his throat.

“Um, see you next week?” He stepped back, scratching the back of his neck.

“Yeah,” Newt took a deep breath and moved to his door, putting a hand on the knob.

“Cool,” Minho walked back to his motorcycle.

“See ya,” Newt waved.

“Bye, paperboy!” Minho sped off down the street. Newt laughed as he went, then stepped inside his house. He closed the door behind him and leaned his back against it, sighing, unable to stop grinning. _How does he make me feel this way? _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's title is a song by Stars, and it's the song I imagined the gang was dancing to here.  
I had so much fun with this chapter! It's quite a bit longer than the others so far but oh well. Newt had a great night just like he said he would!  
~~ Updates might slow down this week 'cause I'm really busy, but they'll definitely pick back up this weekend and onward. Thanks so much for your comments, they seriously make my day!


	6. Another Adventure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First track meet of the season, and the gang wouldn't miss it.

Before he knew it, Newt became a regular member of Minho’s crew (as Minho liked to call them). Another week passed and he began to participate in more of their shenanigans, like covering the art room in pictures of shrek (He’s still not entirely sure what’s so funny about that), or playing “yeet” (throw something at someone and yell yeet, if it hits them you get a point). The group’s tendency to pull pranks even started to rub off on him – he helped Chuck tie Thomas and Minho’s shoelaces together at lunch, so when they went to walk away they tripped over themselves and tumbled to the ground.

That Wednesday, the track team was having its first meet, so Minho, Thomas, and Teresa left class early to get on a bus to the school that was hosting. The rest of the crew would never miss it of course, so as soon as school let out, Newt, Chuck, and Brenda were sprinting to Brenda’s car and pulling up directions on their phones. Newt sat in the passenger seat, directing Brenda while she drove, Chuck in the backseat, leaning forward.

“Okay, turn left up there,” Newt directed.

“No, I think it’s right,” Chuck interjected.

“Are you sure?” Brenda asked, eyeing her blinker anxiously.

“Yeah, I’ve been to this school a couple times for robotics competitions,” Chuck reassured.

“Google maps says left,” Newt responded.

“Well google maps is wrong,” Chuck retorted.

“I think your sense of direction is wrong,” Newt quipped.

“Chuck, I trust you are very smart, but I’m going left,” Brenda clicked her blinker on decisively. Chuck scoffed.

“Chuck, put your seatbelt on,” Newt said, realizing the younger boy wasn’t wearing it in favor of sitting on the edge of his seat and leaning forward.

“I’m trying to see out the windshield-“

“Safety first, put your goddamn seatbelt on-“

“I need to help with directions, since you guys obviously don’t know what you’re doing-“

“I will stop this car!” Brenda turned to look at them for a second.

“Okay, fine, jeez!” Chuck pushed himself back and yanked his seatbelt on. Newt kept his mouth shut, eyeing Brenda wearily. Chuck sighed, “Newt, you’re such a mom.”

“I am not!” Newt frowned back at him.

“Oh, come on, you’re totally the mom friend,” Brenda agreed.

“What? How does that even work-“

“Where do I need to go next?”

“Oh,” Newt quickly looked down at his phone. “Keep going straight.” They continued bickering and shouting directions between poking fun at each other, until they arrived at the school their team was competing against.

“I hope we’re not late,” Newt muttered as they made their way from the parking lot to the bleachers beside the track.

“We wouldn’t be late if we’d gone my way,” Chuck stuck his tongue out at him.

“Oh, hush,” Newt ruffled Chuck’s hair.

“Mooom, stoooop!”

“I’m not your mom.”

“Sure, mom.” Brenda laughed at them.

They took their seats on the bleachers, just as the first event started – hurdles. It started with freshmen, then went up, so they didn’t miss their friends. They saw Thomas and Teresa stretching and getting ready on the field near the starting line, and enthusiastically waved to them. After the freshmen finished, Thomas went out with the sophomore boys and took his place at the starting line. Newt bit his nails as the silence stretched out. The boys took off like bullets when the gun shot went off to signal the start. The bleachers weren’t very full, but you’d think they were with how much noise people made. Brenda was practically screaming, while Chuck cheered “go Thomas!” Newt finally caught on and joined in on the cheering. Dang, Thomas was fast. He cleared the hurdles with ease, an intense expression on his face.

“Yes, he’s in the lead!” Chuck said. Thomas pumped his arms like crazy, pushing through the last stretch before crossing the finish line with a pretty big lead. The other runner from their school got third, giving them a great start.

“Yeah, Thomas!” Brenda cupped her hands around her mouth to shout her support, and Newt whistled. Thomas found them in the crowd and beamed up at them, breathing heavily. Soon, Teresa got in place for the sophomore girls race, and took off down the track. Newt cheered for her with the others, and they started jumping up and down when she barely pulled in front of the girl in the lead at the last moment.

Before he knew it, Newt was having the time of his life. He and his friends yelled enthusiastically for their classmates, even the ones they didn’t know. Newt recognized quite a few of them from his classes. Minho’s first event finally came up: the mile. 1600 meters, four laps around the track, and probably the most stressful to watch. Newt always hated the mile, anxiety increasing as the runners just kept going on and on. Was that person gonna pass the other? Was the other person already tired out? Was this one gonna have that last energy spurt? Who was gonna win? Wait, still another lap?

Newt took a deep breath and leaned forward, elbows on his knees as the runners placed themselves on the starting line. Minho was in lane 7, that’s a bummer, outer lanes are always worse.

“You’ve got this Minho!” Brenda encouraged him.

“Yeah, take ‘em all out!” Chuck put his fists in the air. Minho looked over and winked at them.

“Good luck…” Newt muttered under his breath. Silence fell over the bleachers as the announcer held up their hand. Newt held his breath. The shot rang out, piercing the air, and the runners launched into action. Everyone in the bleachers started cheering once again, and the runners resting and prepping on the field shouted encouragements to their teammates, but Newt didn’t notice any of it as he watched Minho. Minho took off pretty fast, and Newt worried he’d tire himself out too early, but most of the other runners did as well. Newt felt like he was nearly in a trance as he watched him. Minho radiated confidence, perfect form, head held high, mouth slightly open, light on his feet as he flew across the track. Newt licked his lips absent mindedly, studying the determined expression on Minho’s face as he rounded the curve. He continued watching intently, Minho staying in second or third throughout the first three laps. After the first quarter of the fourth lap, Minho picked up his pace slightly, slowly catching up to the boy in first place.

“Come on, Minho, leave ‘em in the dust!” Chuck shouted, Brenda whooping. The boy in first was tired out, breathing ragged, brows furrowed, but he found his last bit of strength as Minho came up on him. They stayed right next to each other until the last straightaway, when Minho gritted his teeth and pumped his arms as hard as he could. His legs moved impossibly faster, and he moved ahead of the other boy. The other boy strained as hard as he could, but couldn’t push himself to go any faster, at the end of his strength and the top of his speed. The distance between them grew as Minho expanded his lead. Newt stood up.

“Yeah, Minho!” He yelled, and Brenda and Chuck joined in. Minho smiled as he closed in on the finish line, the audience’s cheers backing him up. He raised his arms in the air as he crossed it, a huge grin spreading across his face. Newt smiled back at him, even though Minho couldn’t see at the moment. Brenda and Chuck were jumping up and down and hugging each other, but Newt just watched Minho as his teammates ran off the field to him to smother him with congratulations. It reminded of when he did track. When he would win a race and his teammates would hug him, lift in the air. He winced, suddenly feeling the dull pain in his bum leg. God, he missed track. But, he thought, it was alright. If he got to cheer on his friends and watch Minho run and be happy like this, he was fine.

The rest of the meet passed surprisingly quickly, and not nearly as boring as Newt remembered his to be at times. That was probably also because it was impossible to be bored with friends like his. Newt was coming back from the restroom during the last few events when he ran into Alby.

“Hey, Newt, I didn’t know you were here,” Alby greeted him with a friendly smack on the shoulder.

“Yeah, came to watch with some friends,” Newt shrugged.

“Oh, yeah, I’ve seen you hanging out with Minho and some other runners,” Alby said, and Newt nodded. “The team’s good, huh?”

“Really good.”

“Oh, hey, there he is,” Alby pointed Minho out, who was standing on the field, stretching. Minho noticed them and gave them finger guns. Newt rolled his eyes and just waved back, unable to contain the small smile on his face. “You like him?” Alby raised his eyebrows with a smug grin. The question caught Newt off-guard, and he scoffed.

“He’s my friend, but no, I don’t like him like that,” he folded his arms, frowning at his friend.

“Hmm, really?” Alby narrowed his eyes. “From what I’ve seen, you two seem pretty fond of each other.”

“What? No, he’s just really friendly,” Newt scowled, and Alby laughed.

“Alright, whatever you say,” Alby held his hands up in mock surrender. “But, you know, he’s usually not very friendly with people at first. Usually only once he gets to know them.”

_ That’s weird_, Newt thought, though he stayed quiet. _Minho was really friendly with me from the start…_

“Welp, anyways, I gotta head back to my other friends before they wonder where I am,” Alby said.

“Yeah, me too,” Newt replied.

“Well then, see ya buddy,” Alby moved past the other boy, departing with another playful slap on the shoulder. “And good luck with your crush!” Newt scoffed again.

“Shut up,” he fixed Alby with one last glare before heading back onto the bleachers where Brenda and Chuck still were. He joined them and they watched the last events, cheering for their friends, other people they sort-of-knew, and other people from their school who they didn’t know at all. After all the races were over, their team was officially declared the winner, and they ran down to meet their friends. Teresa practically leapt into Brenda’s arms, nearly knocking her over, and Thomas picked Chuck up in a bear hug. Minho sped towards Newt with a huge, dorky grin on his face.

“Great job, man!” Newt said as they approached each other. He definitely was not expecting it when Minho wrapped his arms around his waist and lifted him in the air, spinning him around. Newt let out an embarrassing yelp. “Jesus, you’re sweaty!” He chuckled when he was lowered back to the ground. Minho just shrugged, high fiving the others. Newt caught Alby looking at them a few yards away, where he was standing with another group. Alby gave Newt a thumbs up with an exaggerated smile and eyebrow waggle. Newt rolled his eyes and flipped him off quickly before anybody else saw. Alby feigned offense, putting a hand on his chest and dropping his jaw.

“Dude, that was so awesome!” Chuck exclaimed to the group, drawing Newt’s attention back to them. They talked excitedly about the meet as well as other random things (as friends do), before deciding they needed some food. Brenda offered to drive them to their usual diner, but there was an obvious dilemma.

“Wait, guys, there’s five seats in Brenda’s car,” Teresa spoke up as they walked to the parking lot, “and there’s six of us…”

“Two of us will just have to double buckle,” Thomas immediately responded.

“That’s illegal-“ Newt started to say.

“How ‘bout – Chuck, you sit on someone’s lap,” Minho suggested.

“Hey, I’m short, but I take up a lot of space, and a brain as big as mine is heavier than average,” Chuck shot back.

“Hmm…” Brenda furrowed her brow in thought. “Newt, you’re small.”

“What? I’m taller than you!” Newt retorted.

“Yeah, but you have a smaller build.” Brenda gestured between them.

“Newt, you sit on Minho.” Thomas chimed in, and Minho could’ve sworn he winked at him.

“What!?” Minho and Newt exclaimed at the same time.

“Why don’t you two sit on each other?” Minho pointed to Brenda and Teresa. “You girls are more touchy, anyways.”

“I’m driving, I can’t have anyone sit on me while I’m driving,” Brenda answered matter-of-factly.

“I can drive,” Minho offered.

“I don’t trust you with my car, and Jorge would have both our heads if I let anyone else drive it,” Brenda retorted.

“Alright, it’s settled then!” Teresa clapped her hands together. “Shotgun!” She started moving faster as they approached Brenda’s car.

“Hey, you always get shotgun!” Thomas argued, speeding up to catch up to her. Chuck joined them, and Brenda inserted her thoughts too as they continued bickering. Newt and Minho looked at each other and sighed. _Of course_, Newt thought. _Of fucking course._

They piled into the car, Teresa ultimately getting shotgun because, according to Brenda, she has the best taste in music, and she called it first. Chuck sat on the far left in the back, Thomas in the middle seat. Minho settled into the right seat, then looked out at Newt, face slightly flushed (and not from the track meet).

“Welp,” he patted his thighs. “What do you want for Christmas?” Newt sighed too, before deciding to just suck it up.

“A van,” he climbed into the car and plopped down on Minho’s lap before he could think it over any more. _Alby would be having a field day if he saw this_, he thought. He felt his face grow hot as closed the car door, trapping himself in this awkward situation. Thomas started full on belly laughing, and Brenda started up the car.

“Are ya ready, kids?” She said in an atrocious accent, turning to look at the boys.

“Aye aye, captain!” Chuck replied enthusiastically, while Thomas keeled over in his laughing fit.

“Shut. Up.” Minho deadpanned, wiping a hand down his face. Teresa snapped a picture of the situation and Newt flipped off the camera, hoping it didn’t pick up how red his face surely was.

Newt was all too aware of the hands on his thighs and the breath on his neck as the car ride back from the track meet seemed to go on much longer than the one there. He tried to keep his mind off of it by ranting about the newest twenty one pilots album, but his breath caught in his throat when Minho shifted and his hands slid slightly higher up Newt’s thighs. He felt Minho’s exhale tickle his ear for just a second, and the butterflies in his stomach came back in full force. He tried to console himself, and luckily the others were too engaged in their conversation to notice. Minho inserted himself in the chaos of whatever they were still talking about, so Newt leaned to the side a bit and craned his neck to see his face. He caught his eyes for a moment while the others continued talking, and he could’ve sworn Minho’s gaze flicked down to his lips for a moment. Newt quickly turned back around, subconsciously biting his lip.

They finally slid into a spot on the side of a familiar road, just a few stores down from the diner. Newt shoved out of the car before it even stopped moving, hoping to catch his breath. Teresa smirked at him as she hopped onto the sidewalk, and he just scowled in return. _Let’s just move on_, Newt thought, hoping the others would take the hint.

As they did their usual in the diner, Newt found he was the one who couldn’t keep his mind off of the awkward car ride. He couldn’t stop thinking about being so close to Minho, and found himself wanting to be closer to him again, eyes unfocusing as he stared in his general direction. It was confusing, and kind of scary, mostly because he had no idea why he felt that way. He’d experienced similar things with crushes in the past, or a small pull towards someone he found particularly attractive, but this was different somehow. He could still function normally around those people. This was just plain weird.

“Helloooo, Newt, you in there?” Newt was cut off from his internal monologue by Chuck waving a french fry in his face. He snapped back to reality.

“Huh? Yeah?” He said, sitting up straighter. The others laughed.

“You good, man?” Thomas poked at his cheek and he swatted his hand away.

“Yeah, I just spaced out,” Newt replied, “it’s not like I bloody fainted or something.” The others just laughed some more, but didn’t linger on it too long.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm uncreative with chapter titles lol  
This one was also super fun to write, but of course, all of them are. I love writing the groups dynamic. I hope y'all are enjoying it too!  
Once again, thanks SO much for reading and leaving comments! The next chapter's gonna be another fun one...


	7. Rasputin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SHOPPING!!!!!!!!!

Minho couldn’t sleep. Part of it was the yelling from downstairs - his parents were fighting at really inconvenient hours (again). He could hear it even though he had a fan on in his room. God damn thin walls. Usually he could just sleep right through it, but not tonight. Eventually, the shouts died down, but he still couldn’t keep his eyes closed.

He tossed and turned for another half hour before giving up and reaching for his phone on the night stand. It was Friday night, which means his friends will still be up. It had been a few days since the car incident. That’s what he’d taken to calling it in his head. He still couldn’t get his mind off just how _close _Newt had been. And that he’d been _touching his thighs holy shit_. He tried to process it, he wanted to touch Newt’s thighs just in a differen- wait.

_Fuck_. There it is. Minho face palmed and sighed. He liked Newt. There was no denying it. His gay ass was fucked. He tried to distract himself with his phone. Teresa’s snapchat story featured a video of Thomas in tiny shorts and a flannel singing along to Bohemian Rhapsody, using a hair brush like a microphone. Brenda’s had her and Jorge in matching slippers flipping pancakes even though it was nearing midnight. Minho smiled, but it also struck something like a sad pang in his chest. _I wish I had something like that._ He’d never been close with his parents, and it just worsened as he grew older. He shook his head. Don’t wanna think about that right now.

So, with no other ideas, he did the thing he did best: annoy Newt.

Paperboy

11:54 PM

u kno rasputin

It didn’t take long for Newt to reply. Minho knew he’d be up.

yea

he a wanker

Minho snorted at that. He always thought the word wanker was hilarious. He sent Newt a link to the song Rasputin.

bloody hell

He giggled some more at that response. He loved the way Newt talked, even over text. _Wait, Minho, that’s gay-_

is that even accurate

idk man

u going to hoco

does that stand for homecoming

ya

probs no

WHAT

i’ve never gone to a dance

THAT IS A CRIME

what do i even wear?

u got a suit

or just a fancy collared shirt and dress pants

nah

i mean i have a collared shirt

BRO

WHERE HAVE U BEEN

uh

cancel ur plans tmr we’re goin shopping

welp

didn’t have any plans anyways

good

the boys r goin to hoco

i’m gonna regret this

The next day, as promised, Minho took Newt to the mall to get him “some fancy shit”. When they walked into the mall, Newt stopped for a second to take it all in. Minho kept going a few steps before realizing Newt wasn’t with him. He stopped and turned to see Newt’s bewildered expression. Newt gazed at all the stores and lights and escalators and people, and started to feel a little overwhelmed. He swallowed.

“Hey,” Minho put a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’m with you okay?” He searched Newt’s face. Newt nodded and started walking again. “You don’t get out much, do you?” Minho asked, sticking close to his friend’s side. Newt let out a humorless huff of a laugh, fiddling with the hem of his shirt nervously.

“No…” he conceded.

“It’s alright. I know this place inside out, so if you need a breather, just let me know and I’ll scout out the nearest exit,” Minho bumped Newt’s shoulder in hopes of reassuring him. It looked like it might’ve worked, because Newt’s eyes lifted off the ground and he smiled a bit.

“Thanks.”

“No problem.”

After some browsing, and showing Newt his favorite stores, Minho led Newt to the men’s section of Nordstrom and they began their search.

“So, what are you going for?” Minho asked as they found their way to the more formal section of endless clothing racks. “You thinking like full tux? Or more simple shirt and blazer? Or like a three-piece? The vest thing would look good on you.”

“Uhhhh… what?” Newt had no idea what he was talking about. Minho just stared at Newt for a second.

“You know what, we’ll just try everything.”

After grabbing many different styles, Minho shoved Newt into a dressing room chanting “fashion show”. (Cue dorky montage) Minho was loving Newt’s comments on the outfits. The vest was “too boujee”, the classic suit jacket with shoulder pads “makes me feel like bloody Abraham Lincoln or something, and I’m not into that”, the one with coat tails was “just… unnecessary”. After trying on many shirt and jacket combos and finding the rights size in pants, Newt seemed to come to a conclusion.

“I think this is my favorite,” Newt opened the door to his dressing room to show Minho. He’d chosen a fitted, light blue collared shirt and a simple black blazer, with a simple black belt. Minho eyed him up and down (again). He could get away with that right? Since they were trying on clothes? He didn’t care though, because damn_ he looks good_, was all that Minho could focus on. He watched Newt adjusting his collar nervously, _he’s so cute, what the fuck._

“Well, how do I look,” Newt asked, holding his arms out. Minho shook himself out of his stupor.

“Y-you look great. Really great.” _Oh god I’m a disaster_.

“Thanks,” Newt blushed slightly, scratching at the back of his neck.

“Alright, final thing. Bow tie, or regular tie?” Minho held up his options. Newt frowned at them, humming in thought.

“Regular,” he decided, taking it from Minho. Then he stopped, looking at it wearily. “Uh…”

“You don’t know how to tie it do you?” Minho smirked. Newt slumped.

“No…” he muttered. Minho laughed.

“You’re hilarious,” he took the tie back from him.

“Shut up,” Newt retorted half-heartedly. Minho wrapped the fabric around his neck, and Newt’s breath caught in his throat when Minho’s fingers just barely brushed against his skin. He tried to focus on how Minho was tying the tie so he could learn, but he couldn’t tear his eyes off of his face. He loved Minho’s eyes. There was so much depth there that you wouldn’t notice at first glance. He would gladly drown in them any day. And that strong jawline, god, he wanted to kiss it all over. And don’t even get him started on those lips. He watched as Minho bit his lower lip in concentration and _jesus fuck_, Newt didn’t know it was possible to be so attracted to someone’s lips, they were so round and perfect and-

Minho’s eyes flicked up to Newt’s face and Newt quickly averted his gaze. _God, just stop being so gay for one second-_

“There you go,” Minho finished the knot, and then smoothed out the bottom of the tie, his knuckles just barely grazing Newt’s chest. It was still enough to make Newt’s heart leap into his throat. Minho stepped back, admiring his work.

“Thanks,” Newt bit his lip nervously, staring at his shoes. Minho’s face felt hot and he hoped it wasn’t red, but knowing him it was, so he could just hope and pray to any higher power there ever was that Newt didn’t notice. If he did, what could he do? He can’t blame it on the heat, the store was fucking freezing. He’ll just hope for the best.

“Welp, y-you’re all set,” Minho stuttered out. _That’s embarrassing_.

“Yeah, uh, I’ll get changed, and then, um, we can head out?” Newt started to step back into the dressing room.

“Yup! Yes, great.” Minho wanted to dive into a hole and never see the light of day again. He slapped his cheeks after Newt went back into the dressing room. _Get your shit together!_

They bought the clothes, and Minho was able to somewhat recover from his gay crisis by rambling about last year’s homecoming while they got smoothies and then walking to the parking lot. He told Newt about how Brenda beat a senior in a dance off, and how Thomas kept going up and messing with the DJ’s set up, making it play All Star, and Africa, and Take On Me, until he nearly got kicked out and Teresa had to plead to a staff on his behalf. Newt listened intently and laughed along, unable to take his eyes off Minho as he gestured wildly, sipping his smoothie between tales. He wasn’t gonna lie, he was hella nervous for this dance. But, he decided he was gonna have fun, no matter what his nerves did. Minho seemed ecstatic, and that was enough to make Newt want to go.

Minho drove Newt home and walked him to the door as usual, but he didn’t want to say goodbye.

“Thanks for taking me out,” Newt said as he fished his key out of his pocket. “It was fun.”

“Yeah, anytime, dude,” Minho replied, smiling up at Newt, who was a stair above him. They just stared at each other for a second, and Minho suddenly had the overwhelming urge to grab Newt and kiss him. _Fuck_. “See ya!” He turned quickly and headed back to his car before he could do anything impulsive.

“Bye,” Newt replied, and Minho heard him twist the key and open his door. Minho got into the driver’s seat, and sighed. He’s fucked. He’s in deep shit. He’s super gay for his new best friend and Newt has shown zero interest in him as more than friends. He groaned and let his forehead fall against the top of the steering wheel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> boy howdy these kids are g a y  
sorry if the text convo is hard to read,,,,  
I might not be able to update tomorrow, but I definitely will the day after. Once again, thanks so much for reading! This entire piece is super self indulgent, but it makes me unbelievably happy that others can enjoy it too. Let me know your thoughts, comments are super appreciated!


	8. Hum This Tune Forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang goes to homecoming!

Newt tugged at his tie, scrutinizing himself in the mirror. He hoped he tied it right. It looked like the pictures on the internet, just maybe a bit more crooked. He definitely wasn’t getting used to these fancy clothes any time soon. The blazer was a little too loose in the shoulders, the pants were too loose around the waist without the belt, and the button-down shirt was tightly fitted against his chest. It felt a little awkward, since he never wore shirts so tight. He left the top two buttons open to not strangle himself. Oh well. _Maybe it’ll catch Minho’s attention_-

What, no, he definitely didn’t want to catch Minho’s attention. Absolutely not. Totally. Newt sighed and ran his hands through his hair, trying to school it into a nicer position. It was being too floppy. It wasn’t thick and poofy and cute like Minho’s. _Wait, fuck-_

There was a knock at the door. Oh well, his hair probably didn’t even really matter. Newt grabbed his phone and his school ID and went to the front door. His dad wasn’t home – _thank god_ – so he didn’t have to worry about him getting in the way. He steeled himself, then opened the door.

“Hey,” Minho greeted. He was in a _very _nicely fitted suit jacket, pants, bow tie, and… and a light blue collared shirt. The same color as Newt’s. And _holy shit he looks good_, Newt blurted in his mind, licking his lips subconsciously.

“H-hey,” Newt replied. He thought _his_ shirt was tight, but _oh boy_, Minho’s chest was calling to him-

“You look great,” Minho breathed, taking in Newt’s appearance.

“Thanks, so do you,” Newt reveled in the way Minho’s eyes roamed up and down his body. There’s no way he’s imagining that, right? “Did you do this on purpose?” He reached out and poked Minho’s shoulder, indicating the matching shirt.

“Heh, yeah, I thought it’d be fun,” Minho scratched the back of his neck and looked down with a small, embarrassed smile. It was adorable.

“Did I do my tie right?” Newt asked. Minho inspected it.

“Yeah, good job, man!” Minho praised, slapping him on the shoulder. “You ready to go?”

“Yup.” Minho left his hand on Newt’s shoulder, then slid it around both of them as they walked to his car.

Minho didn’t realize he was rambling the whole car ride until they were about to pull into the school. Damn nervous habits. Newt was too caught up in his own nerves to care though. He pulled down the visor and flipped open the mirror, checking his hair again.

“Ugh, of all days for a bad hair day, why today?” he complained, running his hands through it pointlessly.

“Oh!” Minho reached into the back seat and rummaged around, then produced a container of hair gel.

“Why do you have hair gel in your car?” Newt questioned as he opened it and got some on his fingers.

“You never know when you might need it in a pinch,” Minho explained, shrugging. He leaned over towards Newt and started applying the gel in his hair. Newt’s stomach somersaulted as Minho’s hands gently carded through his hair. He took a few seconds to style it, and Newt could’ve watched him do it all day. Minho bit his lip in concentration as he fluffed up Newt’s hair, eyes focused. _Why is he so fucking pretty?_ Newt decided he was just gonna give up on stopping himself from being extremely gay inside. It was fine as long as Minho didn’t notice, right?

“There!” Minho sat back in his seat and smiled at his work. Newt checked the mirror again.

“Thanks,” he said, inspecting it. “I like it.” He smiled.

They got out of the car, and walked towards the entrance, where a few groups of students were milling around. Music, talking, and laughter came from inside, multi-colored lights spilling out into the night. The sun had just passed under the horizon, still painting the sky orange, pink, and purple. Minho and Newt spotted Teresa, Chuck, Brenda, and Thomas next to the open doors, and they waved them over. Thomas wore a navy blue tux with a matching tie, hair styled neatly. Chuck wore a pink button down and simple blazer, and his dress shoes were shined to perfection. Teresa wore a royal blue, knee-length dress with sneakers (it’s a look), long hair curled. Brenda had a red, ankle-length dress with a slit up the side of the skirt, and classic black pumps.

“Good evening, gentlemen,” Minho greeted in a mock-fancy voice.

“Aw, you two are cute,” Thomas stepped forward and tightened Minho’s bow tie.

“Ooh, matchie matchie!” Teresa teased.

“Shut up, it was his idea,” Newt smirked in Minho’s direction.

“Yes, it was, and we look great,” Minho pushed, slinging an arm over Newt’s shoulders.

They walked into the already bustling gym, now lit with flashing, multicolored lights and a disco ball. The bass thrummed through the floor and they could feel it in their stomachs as they moved into the fray. Kids were packed in the middle, jumping around to the energetic song while more stood off to the side, talking and drinking a bright, definitely artificially colored fruit punch. Newt wouldn’t have been surprised if it was capri sun, or if someone had spiked it. Brenda made a bee-line for the punch bowl, dragging Teresa along with her, and Minho and Thomas ran right into the mosh pit of kids to dance. Newt just stood there for a second, dumb founded, and looked to Chuck at his side.

“Don’t worry dude, this is my first dance too,” Chuck admitted.

“Kind of intimidating, huh?” Newt raised his eyebrows, shifting his weight on his feet.

“Yeah,” the small boy nodded in agreement. “Seems fun though.” Newt wasn’t sure if he could agree with that, but he nodded along anyway. Just then, Brenda and Teresa trotted back over, arms linked, cups of punch in hand.

“Well boys, what do you think?” Brenda raised her glass, then knocked it back like it was a shot or something. Teresa laughed at her, tentatively sipping her own drink.

“Looks crazy!” Newt shouted back over the noise.

“Oh, just you wait ‘till later, when the party _really_ starts!”

“Oh boy,” Chuck sighed and straightened his jacket.

“Come on, let’s dance!” Teresa looped the arm that wasn’t linked with Brenda’s under Chuck’s, careful not to spill her punch, and started leading them towards the throng of dancers. Brenda tossed her cup towards the nearest trashcan and whooped, not caring to look and see if she missed. Chuck just shrugged, and went with them. Not wanting to be left alone, Newt followed them. They plowed straight into the crowd, and Newt made sure to keep sight of Chuck’s hair as they weaved through. He did _not _want to get lost in there. They found a less tight-packed area to dance with some room to breathe. Minho and Thomas found them quickly, jumping high in the air and yelling the lyrics to whatever shitty pop song was playing.

It was all very overwhelming, but Newt was able to forget about that when Minho stood in front of him, took his hands, and bounced to the beat, smiling and dancing like there was no tomorrow. Newt couldn’t help but smile back, colors flashing over their faces, reflecting in Minho’s eyes.

After a few fast paced, bass heavy pop songs, a familiar tune began playing, and the group screamed in excitement. Some other kids did too, and Newt looked around, startled. Is this a normal thing that kids do at dances? He decided to ignore it, in favor of head-banging enthusiastically.

He was in the midst of singing dramatically when he noticed that he wasn’t nervous any more. He looked around and saw his friends, and strangers surrounding them, and realized that right now, nobody really cared about what anyone thought. Nobody really thought anything about anyone else in that moment, when the lights were changing color, and the music was blasting, and bodies moved and jumped all around. Everything seemed surreal, almost like a dream as Brenda and Teresa spun around each other, and Chuck and Thomas bent low to the ground, and they were having fun. Newt was having fun.

Minho was in front of him, and everything else became a blur or soft colors. Minho said something, but Newt couldn’t quite hear it. He guessed it didn’t matter though, because he was smiling, and he looked like he didn’t have a care in the world. And _damn _he looked good in that suit, hair perfect as ever. Minho reached out and grabbed Newt’s tie, using it to pull him closer, and Newt felt a thrill in his chest. For a second he thought he was going to kiss him or something, which would’ve been awesome, but he realized that was ridiculous as soon as it didn’t happen. Minho took one of his hands and lifted it in the air, spinning him around. He continued to lead him in some disorganized, spastic dance, and dipped him at one point, actually succeeding this time. Newt laughed, holding onto his shoulders for leverage as Minho pulled him back up.

“See? Told you I’m a good dancer!” Minho leaned in to yell in his ear so he could hear him over the music.

“I gotta admit, I’m pretty impressed!” Newt replied, mostly just to get a reaction out of Minho, but also because he was legitimately impressed at how easily Minho moved across the floor and swung him around. Newt could’ve danced with him forever, but the song ended all too soon.

“Hey, lets take a break,” Minho nodded towards the wall where the punch was. Newt let himself be lead over and Minho poured drinks for them both. A more mellow song came over the speakers, and more people went off to the sidelines, many breaking off into pairs, or just standing in groups and continuing to dance alone.

“You having fun?” Minho asked.

“Yeah,” Newt’s response came automatically, but he knew it was true. “I am, actually.” Minho gave a soft smile that made his heart melt.

“Good.” Newt looked away, hoping the dim lighting concealed his blush. He was about to ask if all dances were this crowded, but he stopped when a short girl slinked over and put a hand on Minho’s shoulder. Newt didn’t recognize her. He could barely hear what she said, but it looked like she’d asked Minho to dance, and before he knew it, his friend was off on the dance floor with some blonde chick, his drink set aside on the table against the wall. He felt a twist in his stomach. _Wait, why would I be against this?_ Newt scolded himself, frowning into his punch. He looked up again and saw them slow dancing in the crowd. Minho was laughing. He looked away.

“Yo.” Thomas was suddenly in front of him, hands on his shoulders. “Dance with me, I’m lonely.” Newt obliged, but he kept glancing back at Minho and the blonde girl.

“Who’s that?” He asked, gesturing to them with his head. Thomas looked.

“Oh, that’s Vanessa. She’s some popular girl, dates one of those football studs.” Thomas sounded like a middle school girl, informing Newt of all the gossip.

“Why would she ask Minho to dance then?”

“She’s probably fighting with her boyfriend and is trying to make him jealous or something.”

“Why would Minho dance with her? Does he even know her? And isn’t he gay?”

“He’s probably just playing along, ‘cause he’s like that. And yes, he’s very gay.” Thomas then looked at Newt and narrowed his eyes. “Why?”

“N-no reason,” Newt panicked. “Just curious, is all.”

“Hmm, are you jealous?” Thomas teased, drawing out the word and smiling smugly.

“What? Pfft, no, of course not!” Newt rolled his eyes, avoiding eye contact with Thomas. But that made since, didn’t it? _What? No!_ But it did as he looked at Minho again and something in his chest pulled. _Well, fuck._

“You like him, don’t you?” Thomas pressed. Newt groaned and buried his face in his friend’s shoulder. Thomas laughed. “Don’t worry man, he’s totally crushing on you.”

“What!? No way!” Newt jerked his head back up.

“Oh yeah, have you seen the way he looks at you?” Thomas continued, eyebrows raised.

“What. No way. That’s- he’s- no. I don’t believe you.”

“Come on, man,” Thomas gave him a “done with your shit” look. Newt was about to protest further when Chuck suddenly jumped on Thomas’s back.

“’Ey, buddy!” He said in a funny voice, giving Thomas a noogie. Thomas screamed and bent over, trying to flop Chuck off of his back. Newt couldn’t help but laugh, even though he was having just a little bit of a crisis at the moment. Thomas and Chuck began scuffling playfully while he remained confused about his feelings. But, unfortunately, it just became clearer and clearer as he looked over to Minho again.

_ He _wanted to dance with Minho.

He wanted to wrap his arms around Minho’s neck and feel his hands on his waist. He wanted to be close to him like that. He wanted to pull him down and press their lips together. He wanted to see what was under that fancy shirt-

“Hey, look!” Chuck was pointing to Brenda and Teresa slow dancing towards the edge of the crowd on the dance floor. They looked nervous and bashful, looking between each other and the floor with small smiles. Newt sighed, and purposely avoided thinking about what he wanted to do with Minho.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Newt FINALLY admitted to himself that he likes Minho. Oh my tiny, gay babies.  
The song they got excited about was Come On Eileen by Dexy's Midnight Runners, and that's also the inspiration for the chapter title! One of the lyrics is "Eileen I'll hum this tune forever..." and it's a GREAT song.  
Sorry for the wait, updates will probably be a few days apart now. Hope you guys are enjoying! I know I am!  
Once again, comments are super appreciated!


	9. Slumber Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The dance is over, but the gang doesn't want the party to end, so... slumber party!

Minho thinks the heat might be getting to him as he stumbles towards his friends. The lights are flashing and moving all around him and so are people, and the music feels fuzzy in his ears. Things are unfocused. It’s almost like he’s drunk, but he’s completely aware. He’s fully conscious of what he’s doing. He shakes his head and things clear up a bit. He’s happy. He’s having fun.

He’d just been dancing with some cute popular girl. She was now off doing whatever, and Minho wanted to find his friends. He spotted Thomas busting a move and smiled. He saw Newt next to him cheering him on and busting out some moves of his own. He smiled wider.

“Eyyyy,” he called out as he approached them.

“Yo, who was that?” Thomas nudged his shoulder.

“Oh, just some popular girl trying to make her ex jealous or something.”

“Ha, I knew it!” Thomas elbowed Newt as he said that, and Newt just shrugged.

They joined up with the others and continued to dance as the night stretched on. They jumped and flailed and swayed and sang until the music stopped and the fluorescent lights came on. There was a chorus of disappointed “awww”s from the remaining students - significantly fewer than there were originally. They filtered through the doors, getting into cars, milling around in small groups and talking, some with a surprising amount of energy for dancing for three hours straight into the night. Some of those people were, in fact, Minho’s friends. Teresa skipped over to the top of the stairs leading down to the parking lot with her hands in the air, shouting out a “woooo!” that was cut off by Brenda coming up behind her and lifting her in the air. Thomas vaulted over a railing while saying “parkour!”, and proceeded to fall into a bush. Chuck was filming all of this and laughing hysterically. Minho couldn’t stop smiling. He checked his phone – it was past ten, not too late. He turned to see Newt behind him, yawning and dragging a hand down his face. His hair was messy, his tie loosened, shirt ruffled. Cute.

“Tired?” Minho asked, moving closer to him. Newt hummed a reply and leaned into Minho, letting his head fall on his chest. Minho wrapped his arms around him instinctively, then worried that maybe that was pushing it too far. He quickly stopped worrying though when Newt seemed to relax into his hold, nuzzling up against his chest. Minho forgot how to breathe. _That’s adorable, what the fuck._ “Why don’t we get you home?” He asked softly into Newt’s hair.

“Nooo,” Newt groaned in protest, “I don’t wanna…” Minho sighed.

“You know what, me neither,” he agreed. Newt grumbled and further buried himself in Minho’s arms in response. “Hey, I have an idea.” Newt poked his head up at that. “Hey, guys!” Minho yelled over at his friends. Brenda was giving Chuck a piggy back ride, and Thomas was carrying Teresa bridle style and singing something dramatic. They all stopped and turned to Minho when he addressed them, which Minho found very amusing. “Slumber party?” He proposed, raising his eyebrows for dramatics.

“Yaaaas!” Teresa threw an arm in the air and kicked a leg out, causing Thomas to nearly drop her. The rest of them gave their own variations of excited agreements, and even Newt managed a pathetic little “yayyy”.

“We can do it at my house, Jorge’s super chill about this kind of thing,” Brenda offered. Everyone was happy to agree again, thanking Brenda and praising Jorge (gotta love that dude).

Minho swung by his house to grab some extra clothes for himself, and whoever else needed them before continuing on to Brenda’s house. He got there just as the others did.

“Okay guys, be quiet, he might be asleep,” Brenda instructed as she unlocked the front door. When they stepped in, they could hear the sound of a TV coming from the other room, indicating that Jorge was still awake. Brenda pointed to where they were supposed to take off their shoes and drop their stuff. “Jorge, I’m back! And I brought stragglers,” she called out.

“Stragglers?” Thomas asked. Brenda ignored him. Jorge came around the corner in a bathrobe and slippers, holding a tub of ice cream and a spoon. _What a mood_, Minho thought.

“Ah, good evening, muchachos,” he greeted. They all said lazy variations of hellos, and Jorge looked at each of them with a warm smile. His eyes landed on Newt. “This one’s new.”

“Oh, this is Newt,” Brenda pulled Newt forward. “He moved here at the beginning of the year. We sucked him into our shenanigans.” Jorge chuckled.

“Welcome, hermano,” he held out a hand and Newt shook it.

“Hi,” he greeted.

“Well, you know the rules. Keep the volume down, don’t stay up too late, all that good stuff.” They all nodded, saying “yep”, and generally agreeing to abide by Jorge’s simple requests. Brenda grabbed his spoon and stole a bite of his ice cream. “And no sex on the couch.”

“Jorge!” Brenda scolded, rolling her eyes like a kid whose parent was embarrassing them would. Jorge cackled and clapped her on the shoulder.

“You kids have fun,” he walked back through the kitchen and to the living room with his ice cream. Brenda shook her head, then started leading them in the other direction, down a hallway to a large room with a couch, a small TV, a bookshelf, and some decorations, as well as at least three blankets scattered around.

“I like your dad,” Newt commented as they went.

“He’s not my dad,” Brenda grumbled while the others laughed.

“I know, but he has very ‘dad’ vibes.”

“See, that’s what I think, too,” Chuck chimed in.

Minho and Brenda distributed their extra clothes among their friends – Teresa wore Brenda’s clothes, Newt and Thomas wore Minho’s, and Chuck wore Minho’s ‘softest shorts ever’, and Brenda’s hoodie. They all started to settle down, but, for the billionth time that night, Minho couldn’t take his eyes off of Newt. Something about him in his clothes made his chest flutter like crazy. The sleeves of his hoodie went half way over his hands, and the collar hung loosely. He pulled the hood over his head, and it ruffled his hair. _He’s just too fucking cute_, Minho thought, _I am going to die._ Plus, the light blue color looked really good on him. Minho felt his face grow hot and he hoped it wasn’t too glaringly obvious.

Brenda and Chuck went to make popcorn while Thomas and Teresa went through the pile of DVDs sitting by the TV. Newt flopped onto the couch with a dramatic groan and pulled on the drawstrings of his hoodie so the hood scrunched up around his face. Minho laughed and grabbed his phone out of his pocket to take a picture. Newt held up his hands in peace signs when he realized the camera was pointed at him. Minho sat down next to him as he loosened the hood.

“You look like a little gremlin,” he commented. Newt went into a giggle fit, laughing a lot more than he probably normally would if he wasn’t in that delirious state of being super tired and happy and carefree. Minho thought it was adorable. He snapped a few more pictures while Newt swatted at his hands, saying “no paparazzi”, and “Thomas help, I’m being attacked”. Thomas came over and flopped down on Newt’s other side, causing Minho to drop his phone.

“We’re watching sixteen candles!” Thomas announced.

“I love that movie!” Newt replied as he shifted around on the couch so his legs were on Thomas’s lap, and his upper body leaned against Minho. Minho wrapped his arms around his torso so it was more comfortable while mentally celebrating that he gets to cuddle with Newt. He wasn’t usually very touchy, so this was exciting, to say the least. Teresa gathered all of the blankets in the room and made a nest for herself on the floor in front of the couch. Brenda and Chuck re-entered with two large bowls of popcorn just as the movie started. Brenda joined Teresa in her blanket nest, and Chuck squeezed onto the couch next to Thomas.

Thomas started snoring halfway through the movie, and Brenda was slumped against the couch, an arm thrown over Teresa’s shoulders. Minho could feel his eyelids drooping, heavy with the weight of sleep. He heard Chuck shift on the other end of the couch, and could feel Newt’s stomach rising and falling steadily under his hands. If he leaned his head down his nose got buried in Newt’s hair and he could smell his shampoo and the hair product he’d given him. Newt sighed and sunk further into Minho’s hold.

“You’re comfy,” he grumbled softly, and Minho couldn’t help but smile. His weight was warm and comforting against him. He could get used to this. It wasn’t long before sleep took hold of him, Newt’s breathing and the white noise of the movie lulling him gently.

“Where have you been?”

Minho sighed and closed the door. He turned around to face his dad, standing in the doorway to the living room.

“At a friend’s,” Minho replied simply, kicking off his shoes. His dad scoffed.

“At a friend’s? You never said anything about staying overnight somewhere. Your mom and I expected you home last night by midnight.”

“Well, there was a change of plans.” Minho moved towards the stairs.

“A change of plans? And you didn’t even care to call us?”

“You guys weren’t even home last night!” Minho stopped in front of the stairwell and immediately regretted it. He did not want to deal with this right now.

“Still, we didn’t know where you were!”

“You know, _you_ could’ve called _me_, asked me where I was, but you didn’t, did you? Not even a text?”

“Oh, stop that, you can’t talk to your elders like that. How is a disrespectful brat going to-“

“Don’t start with that respect bullshit, you don’t even care about what happens to me-“

“Don’t say that, you know that’s not true-“

“Oh yeah? Why don’t you ever ask me how I am then? Why don’t you ask me about track, or my friends? Why don’t you ask about anything other than school and grades?” His mom came in as he yelled, standing next to his dad.

“Minho, please,” she pleaded, looking genuinely concerned.

“I can’t do this right now.” Minho stomped up the stairs and to his room.

“You get back here!” His father shouted after him.

“Just let him go-“ He heard his mom start to say something to his dad, but he slammed his door. He didn’t want to hear it. The shouting continued downstairs. He flopped face down onto his bed and growled in frustration. _Why does he always have to get on my case?_ He fumed at his dad, but he knew it was his fault. He should have told his parents he wasn’t coming home until morning. He could’ve just apologized instead of arguing, but he just had to go and be proud and idiotic like always. He rolled onto his back and pressed the heels of his palms into his eyelids. He longed for someone to be there with him, help him through this. But that person left. _It was all my fault, wasn’t it?_

Don’t want to deal with that either. Minho got up and quickly changed into workout clothes, then grabbed his ear buds. He went to his window and shoved it open, sticking his feet into his sneakers, which were already haphazardly placed under it. He climbed out and down the drainpipe, dropping onto the ground below. He stuck his ear buds in and took off at a run.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another fun one (except for the end)! I love writing the group's dynamic, they're all so silly.  
Sorry for the wait! Sadly, the next one's gonna be a bit of a wait too, as I'm not gonna be able to work on it again until Tuesday. Thanks for being patient with me!  
Next time we get to see what's up with our boys' personal lives...  
As usual, comments are appreciated! Thanks for reading <3


	10. Inside Out an Back Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Newt fights with his dad and things get heated. More than usual.

Newt was shaking. His dad was standing in front of him, yelling about something, calling him names. He had the nerve to call him names. He didn’t even remember why they were fighting. All he could focus on was the rage boiling inside of him, all the pent up anger and resentment, everything stirring up at once. His father had said something about him going out too much and that it was irresponsible, and Newt had shot back that his dad was never home, so he can’t criticize him when _he’s _the one being irresponsible. Now he was getting a heated lecture, but he couldn’t hear what his dad was saying. He’d never really fought back before. But he was done. This time, he wasn’t going to cower away.

It was almost as if he was seeing everything through a filter. Almost like he wasn’t in his body, but he was still experiencing everything as if he was. That had never happened before either. He decided to ignore it. More important things to worry about at the moment. He was only getting half of what his father was saying.

“…Need to be more responsible… -keep your head in the right place-“ His father was stepping closer to him, pointing a finger in his face.

“Oh, don’t give _me _a lecture on responsibility, you’re never even here to see what I’m doing!” Newt fumed, making himself as tall as possible and pressing back towards the man.

“I work hard to keep a roof over our heads, and food in the fridge, don’t be so disrespectful, you little brat-“

“Oh, sure, you do what’s required of you, you do the bare minimum and then you run away! You never make sure I’m actually going to school, or eating, or anything!” Newt was surprised at himself. He’d never stood up to his father this much before. It almost scared him, but he couldn’t stop now. He was too angry.

“You know I’m busy with work-“

“How can you even call yourself a father? You certainly don’t act like one!” They were all up in each other’s faces, and Newt could smell the alcohol on his dad’s breath. He didn’t like this. This wasn’t going to end well. He’d gone too far. But he can’t back down now, can he? He can’t just let this go. He’s been holding everything in for too long.

“You worthless piece of shit, don’t-“

“Worthless?” Newt was seeing red. “All you do is sit on your ass and drink all day!”

That was it. That was when he crossed the line.

_Smack._

Newt’s head whipped to the side with the force of it and he stumbled backward. _What just happened?_ He looked back at his dad, who was holding his hand up. The expression on his face changed from murderous to horrified in a split second as he looked at his hand and then back to his son. Newt lifted his own hand to his face where he’d been struck. It stung when he touched it, and his fingers came away smudged with blood. He looked back at his dad’s hand. _His rings. His stupid fucking rings. _He looked into the eyes of the man in front of him, expression still astounded, completely caught off guard, mouth hanging open slightly. His father looked surprised too, and his reactions were slow, probably due to the amount of alcohol currently in his system. He said nothing.

_That’s never happened before_. Newt closed his mouth and hardened his expression. His vision blurred. He ran. He thought he might’ve heard his father call out to him, but he couldn’t be sure. He burst out the front door, not bothering to shut it behind him. He rushed to his bike, got on, and sped away as fast as he could. He didn’t know where he was going, but it didn’t matter. He was going _away_.

He still didn’t feel totally attached to himself. He certainly felt his death grip on the handlebars, and the strain of his feet against the pedals, and the dull pain in his bum leg, the wind rushing through his hair and his clothes, nipping at his skin. He felt the wound on his face. He didn’t even feel the pain, just the shock. The immense feeling of _what the fuck just happened?_ The overwhelming urge to get away. Get away, away, far away.

All the times he’d fought with his father flashed through his mind. All the times he’d threatened to leave him on the street. All the times he’d called him worthless. Newt knew better than to let it get to him, but he always did. He carried it with him everywhere he went. _Worthless_. He knew it wasn’t true. But it still hurt. His heart beat fast and hard in his chest. His breath wheezed it’s way in and out of his lungs in fast, heavy puffs. He wanted to scream. He didn’t even realize he was trembling until he was inadvertently swerving off the road into a grassy area. He could barely see where he was going, when suddenly his bike hit something – a rock? – and he tumbled off of it, rolling over himself on the ground ungracefully. His bike crashed a few feet away from him, and his body finally came to a stop as he landed on his back and his arm flew out to the side, his head hitting the ground painfully. He only remembered to breathe when he felt pain in his chest. He sucked in breath desperately, but it hurt. He stared up at the clouds.

_He’s sitting on a roof, legs dangling over the edge, swinging thoughtlessly. He hears laughter on either side of him. To his left, a small boy, head thrown back with laughter. To his right, three more, all bigger than the other, but not too much bigger than himself. He’s in middle school. Seventh grade? Eighth? One of the boys to his right lobs an empty soda can as far as his spindly arm could muster. It clatters on the concrete and one of the other boys whistles. More laughter. He’s laughing too. _

_ Next he’s in his room. His old room. Before he moved. He’s crying. Why is he crying? He’s texting someone. Someone with a silly name in his phone. How old is he now? Freshman year? Still middle school? He types something about fighting with his dad and sends it to the person._

_ He’s on the roof again. It’s the same roof as before, but he’s older this time. He feels a distinct hollowness in his stomach as he looks down. Suddenly, he’s falling. Next thing he knows, he’s on the ground, looking up at the sky. He calls someone. Someone’s coming to get him. Someone’s helping him up, hugging him. It feels safe._

_ He’s somewhere different now. A place not as familiar, but not as tainted. He hears his name. He turns, and someone’s standing there, looking at him. Minho. He gives him the warmest, most fond smile he’s ever seen, and holds out his hand. Newt takes it, and he feels the hollowness inside of him start to fill up. _

Newt came crashing back to reality, back to his body, back to the earth he currently laid on, and started breathing heavily all over again, sucking in air desperately as if he never had before. He curled his hands into fists, grabbing at the grass, fingers digging into the dirt, just to make sure it’s real. He laid there looking up at the sky, just like that time. He let out a shaky breath. For the first time, he can put a name to the feeling he gets in moments like these when he forgets what’s happening, what to do. _Fear._

But this time, he knew what to do. He focused all his energy into moving his arm to grab his phone out of his pocket. He held it up in front of his face and dialed the only person he wanted to see right then.

He picked up quickly.

“Hello?” The voice on the other end chirped. Newt let out a breath, feeling easier just hearing the other’s voice.

“Minho?” He breathed.

“Yeah?” Minho replied.

“Um… can you… I mean- uh-“ Minho must have heard the waver in his voice, the shaking in his breath against the phone.

“Are you okay?” Minho asked, voice laced with concern. Newt pressed his lips together tightly for a moment.

“No…” He admitted. He heard rustling on the other end.

“Where are you?”

“Um,” Newt looked around and saw an intersection nearby. He rattled off the names of the streets.

“Don’t go anywhere. I’ll be there soon.” Minho hung up. Newt let his hand fall to his side, still staring up at the gray sky. He felt numb.

He didn’t even realize he hadn’t moved until a car was pulling over somewhere behind him on the road. The car door opened and then slammed shut, and footsteps came towards him at a frantic pace. He forced himself up into a sitting position and turned just in time to see Minho crouching down beside him.

“Newt?” He said, and his voice was so soft, worried, and caring, he could’ve melted right then and there.

“H-hey,” Newt croaked. Minho’s eyes widened and he reached out and took Newt’s face in his hands, so gentle and careful. He turned Newt’s head to look at his wound.

“Newt, you’re bleeding,” he practically whispered, brows furrowed with worry.

“Yeah,” Newt let out a humorless chuckle. Minho sank down more to sit fully on the ground next to him, hands not leaving his face. He looked Newt over and saw the dirt and grass stains on him, the bruise on his face, his bike on its side a few feet away, then back to his eyes.

“What happened?” Minho searched Newt’s eyes. _What did happen?_ Newt thought, but then he remembered. The shouting. The pain. His father hit him. He felt a lump rise in his throat and pressure at the back of his eyes, blurring his vision. He felt his expression contort as the tears threatened to push there way out. Minho’s expression changed too, like it was painful for him to see Newt hurting like this.

“Oh, Newt,” he breathed, another almost-whisper, and pulled him into a hug. Newt hugged back fiercely, wrapping his arms around Minho’s waist and burying his face in his shoulder. Minho held him just as tightly, and Newt cried. He cried, and he finally let it all out.

It felt like he was unloading years’ worth of bottle up emotions. Like a weight lifted off his shoulders. Minho’s arms were safe and warm and comforting, holding him and rocking him gently, letting him just cry until he didn’t have any tears left. He didn’t know how much time had passed when his breathing finally evened out, when his eyes stopped leaking, when his shoulders stopped shaking. He released Minho and they both pulled back, but Minho kept a hand on his back, rubbing comforting circles in between his shoulder blades.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Minho asked softly. Newt took a deep breath. He actually felt like he could talk about things this time. It would probably be nice to tell someone about everything after keeping it to himself for so long. Minho didn’t push him. It was nice.

And so, Newt told Minho everything. He told him about how his mother left when he was so little, he didn’t even remember her. He told him how he learned how to take care of himself by fifth grade because his father’s drinking problem was getting to the point that he couldn’t do it. He told him about his friends: Winston, Zart, Frypan, Alby. He told him how middle school wasn’t actually that bad. He told him about Alby moving away after middle school, and everyone drifting apart freshmen year. He told him how he just sort of lost hope. He told him how at the end of freshmen year, he’d jumped from a roof because he didn’t know what else to do, and hurt his leg, and how he’d called Alby, and Alby had come to get him. He told him he couldn’t tell his father, so he never got his leg checked on by a doctor, so it never healed properly. He told him how depressed he was sophomore year, with no friends and no running because of his leg. He told him how he and his dad fought every time they saw each other, which seemed to only be two or three times a week at most. He told him how he’d never really fought back much until now. He told him how he’d snapped, crossed the line. But when he got to the part where his father hit him, he stuttered, his voice cutting off, catching in his throat abruptly. Minho listened the whole time. Newt tried again, but he still couldn’t bring himself to say the words. Minho seemed to understand though.

“Shh, it’s okay,” he whispered, squeezing Newt’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry you had to go through all that… you deserve so much better. You deserve the world.”

“Heh,” Newt sniffed, “thanks.”

“Seriously,” Minho pressed on, “no one deserves that, least of all, you.” Newt smiled. Minho had a way of making him feel happy, no matter what situation he’d been in before. “And…” he continued, “I understand. I mean, I understand a lot of what you’re feeling. I…” He sighed. “I fight with my parents a lot, too. They’re not around very often either, but when they are… I just- it seems like all my dad cares about is grades. My mom actually checks in on me sometimes, and she’s a lot more gentle than him. They always try to be home for dinner, but only make it half the time. I almost prefer it when they don’t, because it’s just so… awkward. And tense.” Minho sighed again, and Newt leaned into him more, as if to reassure him that he was listening, that he understood. “And I can relate to just feeling so… alone. I… I have a sister.” Newt wanted to sit up and gasp or something. He had no idea, Minho had never told him anything about a sister. But, he stayed calm, and listened. He didn’t want to interrupt. “She’s older, and she graduated high school when I finished my freshmen year. We were always pretty close, and we could go to each other when we fought with our parents. She was always there for me but then…” Minho sniffed, and realized that he had begun crying too. He wiped at his tears. “After she graduated, and after that summer… she just left. I mean, we knew she was going off to college, but she just… completely cut off from us. She hasn’t said a word to me or my parents since the day she left. I’ve texted and called her so many times but… she never answers.” He took a deep breath, more tears falling down his cheeks. “And I’m always so conflicted… sometimes I hate her. I hate her for leaving. And I don’t want her to come back. But then, sometimes I miss her. So much. I remember how much fun we’d have together, and how we’d comfort each other when our parents were fighting, and I just want her to come back so bad. And then I hate myself for wanting to beg her to come back. But then I feel like an asshole when I hate her. And sometimes… I can’t help but feel like it’s all my fault.” Newt frowned up at him. Why would it be his fault? Minho continued, “If I wasn’t such a piece of shit,” he chuckled wetly, “maybe we all wouldn’t fight so much. If we didn’t fight…” he sniffed again. “Maybe she wouldn’t have left.” He fell into broken sobs, holding Newt just as tightly as before. Newt hugged back, wanting to return the favor. _You deserve better,_ he thought. _You deserve to be happy_.

“It’s not your fault,” he whispered. Minho sighed, breath steadying a bit. “It couldn’t have been your fault.”

“I know,” Minho huffed out a humorless laugh. “I know it’s probably ridiculous to think that, but I always… I can’t help thinking that I’m a bad person or something.”

“Minho.” Newt sat up and faced his friend, bringing his hands up to his face to wipe away his tears with his thumbs. “You’re not a bad person. Sure, there’s no doubt you’ve fucked up at some point in your life, but we all have. It’s okay. You’re thoughtful, and caring, and such a good friend.” He searched Minho’s face, and saw it soften a bit. “You’re not a bad person, Minho,” he repeated with finality. Minho grabbed his wrists gently and smiled at him.

“Thank you, Newt. You have no idea how much that means to me.” Newt could’ve kissed him right then and there.

“Thanks to you, too. I… I really needed to get all that out.”

Minho gave a breathy laugh, this one more genuine than the previous ones.

“Me too, man.” He leaned forward and touched his forehead to Newt’s, closing his eyes. Newt looked up at him and a warmth settled in his chest. He wanted Minho to be happy. He looked so peaceful in that moment. Newt sighed. He probably could’ve just stayed like that forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my poor babies :'(  
guess they both just have asshole dads, huh?  
sorry for slow updates! school has started, so I'm more busy! still gonna try my best though.  
next time we get some fluff! my favorite!  
once again, thanks so much for reading <3


	11. For Now

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol

By the time they were ready to let go of each other, the sun was already setting. Minho offered to let Newt spend the night as his place, which he accepted, as he was in no shape to go home and possibly face his father again. Minho helped him up and led him to his car. He also offered to shove Newt’s bike in the car, but Newt opted to just leave it.

They parked in Minho’s driveway, and Minho showed Newt how to climb into his room through the window.

“Now you can come over and sneak in and bother me whenever you want,” he said after they made it inside safely.

“Heh, thanks,” Newt replied, looking around. “Nice room.” Minho’s room was decently sized and had a bathroom attached. There were posters all over one wall, and little gadgets and other things that held some sort of value to Minho’s life on top of his dresser. His desk was also littered with papers and random items.

“Thanks,” Minho said. Newt was still looking around when he pulled him into the bathroom. He grabbed a rag and wet it in the sink. Newt spotted himself in the mirror and frowned. He leaned forward a bit, turning his head to inspect his wound.

“Lemme see,” Minho instructed bringing his fingers under Newt’s chin to tilt his head up. He frowned as he tried to see it. The angle was a little awkward, and the lighting didn’t allow him to see it as clearly as he could. He looked around to see what he could do, and then – _ding! _Light bulb. He scooted a hairbrush and a tube of toothpaste out of the way, then patted the counter.

“Hop up,” He gestured to it. Newt narrowed his eyes, but obliged, hopping onto the counter and slouching in front of Minho. Minho stepped forward between his legs and lifted his hands to Newt’s face again. There. Better. He took the rag and gently wiped away the dried blood. Newt sucked in a breath through gritted teeth.

“Sorry,” Minho whispered. He bit his lip as he dabbed away the last of the blood. The wound was still pretty raw. He stepped back and opened a drawer, rummaging around the towels and old toothbrushes until he found what he was looking for. “Aha!” He stood back up holding the box of band aids, then ripped it open and pulled one out. When he looked back up, Newt was smiling at him. Minho repositioned his face, and unwrapped the band aid.

“Hold still,” he said as he carefully pressed it on over Newt’s cheek bone. “There.” He smoothed it down one last time, then leaned back to look Newt in the eyes, still holding his face softly.

“Thanks,” Newt averted his gaze downwards, and… was he blushing? Minho suddenly realized the position they were in – standing between Newt’s legs while he sat on the counter, cupping his cheeks… He could just pull him forward and kiss him so easily. He wanted to. _Fuck, what am I doing?_

“N-no problem.” Minho stepped back, flicking his eyes down to the floor, scratching the back of his neck. That was awkward. Newt slid off the counter, and they just stood there for a moment, avoiding eye contact. Minho eyed a smudge of dirt on Newt’s jeans. “Let me give you some clean clothes. Can’t have sitting around in those dirty ones,” he said, leading the way back into his room and towards his dresser.

“Thanks, man,” Newt replied, following. Minho grabbed a random hoodie and pair of sweatpants from his dresser and tossed them to Newt. “You’re my hero, you know that?” Newt smiled, grabbing the clothes. Minho chuckled.

“Of course I am, I’m like, Asian superman,” He quipped. Newt laughed, and Minho smiled. It was good to see him laughing again. He turned to give Newt privacy while he changed, but he couldn’t help but take a peek in the mirror when he noticed it was in front of him. He caught Newt pulling his shirt over his head and _damn_, he had a nice back. He swallowed and bit his lip, imagining what it would be like to run his hands over it, to feel his muscles and his smooth skin under his fingers-

Minho quickly looked down again when Newt started removing his pants. _Don’t need my thoughts to get any more carried away. _

A few episodes of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia later, Minho had gotten some homework done while Newt fell asleep on his shoulder. He sighed and set his notebook down next to him. He saw out the window that the light was nearly gone, and stars were appearing in the sky. Newt’s hair tickled his neck, and his even breath was calming. He almost leaned down and kissed his head, but refrained when Newt stirred. The red head sat up and rubbed his eyes, yawning. Minho paused the show and shut his laptop. Newt blinked at him groggily.

“Hey,” Minho said, smiling. _He’s so cute._ Newt just gave a sleepy hum in response. “C’mere, I wanna show you something.” Minho got up and walked to the window. Newt followed as he opened it and climbed out onto the section of roof nearby. He led him up to the top of the roof, then sat down and patted the spot next to him. Newt obliged, and they laid down to look at the sky. Minho sighed again. He loved coming up here.

“It’s beautiful,” Newt commented softly.

“Yeah,” Minho replied, “I come up here when I need to quiet my mind.” They laid there for a while as the light faded, pastel colors giving way to deep purple and blue, twinkling stars filling the sky. Minho never got tired of watching the sky from the solitude of his rooftop, but having Newt by his side somehow made it more special. He felt movement beside him, and suddenly Newt slipped his hand into his.

“Thank you,” He breathed, intertwining their fingers. Minho turned his head to look at him, and saw that he was at peace with himself. At least for now.

“Or course,” Minho whispered back. For now is better than not at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of a short one, but very sweet. Next one's gonna be a fun one though...  
Once again, as usual, thank you SO MUCH for reading, kudos and comments and the works are uber appreciated.  
I'm getting really busy with school and other stuff, so updates are slow, but I'm gonna keep working on this as much as I can.


	12. We can be Heroes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Newt's birthday

That morning was just like any other. Wake up, force yourself out of bed, throw together some breakfast, put on something acceptable, get your shit together and go. Newt groaned dramatically as he stretched and tried to rub the sleep from his eyes. As he looked for something to wear, he saw he still had Minho’s hoodie, draped over his bed frame. He smiled, then went over and put it on. It still smelled like him. It was his track sweater, and it had Minho’s name on the back. Newt couldn’t help but smile as he examined himself wearing it in the mirror. Hell, maybe it was making a statement. Maybe this screamed “Minho look, I’m wearing your sweater, omg, maybe I like you or something”. He thought it over while trying to tame his hair.

He’d accepted that he definitely had a crush on the runner, and Thomas said Minho liked him (although Thomas was hardly a reliable source), so why not go for it? Newt shrugged and blindly grabbed a pair of jeans from his dresser.

He pedaled his bike down the street towards school, cold air biting his skin and ruffling his hair. It was just a normal day, shoving his bike into a semi-acceptable position in the bike rack, making his way towards the school building. He checked his phone, adjusted his backpack, everything was normal. Then, suddenly, as he rounded a corner, Thomas was blowing one of those party horn things in his face and he was lifted in the air and spun around by an over-excited Minho. Chuck and Teresa were jumping at him wearing party hats and Brenda pulled him into a hug. They were all yelling the same thing.

“Happy birthday!”

Newt had completely forgotten about his birthday. It had entirely escaped his mind long ago. He never really celebrated it, and he never really had anyone remember other than Alby. So when his friends were bombarding him with ultra-enthusiastic birthday wishes, he was astounded. He didn’t know what to do. They were all sporting huge smiles, hugging him and patting him on the back.

He didn’t know what to do, but he found himself smiling back. How could he not?

“Shit, it’s my birthday,” he chuckled, and the others laughed with him. “Wow.” Newt felt warmth blooming in his chest, expanding throughout his body, and tears threatened to spill from his eyes. “Thanks, guys,” he choked.

“Aw, Newtie, c’mere.” Thomas cooed at him and gave him another bear hug.

“Wait, how’d you know it was my birthday?” He frowned, suddenly remembering that he never actually told any of them.

“Alby told us,” Minho replied, smiling fondly.

“Ah, that sneaky bastard,” he laughed, wiping at his eyes.

“You’re seventeen, dancing queen!” Brenda supplied.

“Hell yeah!” They all laughed again.

“So,” Minho clapped his hands together. “I know you love Cage the Elephant-“

“Ugh, yes, best band,” Newt put a hand over his heart in appreciation.

“And I found out that they’re actually touring right now, and there’s a concert two towns over in only a few weeks. So, we all pooled our money to get you tickets!” He announced. Newt’s jaw dropped.

“No way,” he deadpanned. Minho nodded, and he could see Chuck behind him also nodding excitedly. He couldn’t believe it. He _loved _Cage the Elephant. He threw his hands over his mouth. “No way!” Minho pulled two slips of paper out of his pocket and handed them to Newt.

“For you and a plus one of your choosing, ‘cause concerts aren’t nearly as fun alone.” Newt took the tickets and stared at them incredulously. He couldn’t even comprehend what was happening. His friends had legitimately thought about what he would like, and put a huge effort into getting him the _best _birthday gift possible. How could he be so lucky?

Newt squealed like a teenage girl and practically threw himself at Minho. Minho laughed and reciprocated the embrace, and the others soon joined too in a big group hug.

“Holy shit guys,” Newt said once they parted. “I can’t believe this. You’re the best friends ever. Like, I can’t even- you’re the most amazing people. Thank you.” They all responded with their own “of course” or “anything for my homie” (to which he said “don’t call me homie, you swine”).

After a surprisingly bearable day of classes, Newt was whisked away by his wonderful friends and taken around town. They went to Teresa’s favorite bakery, acted like hooligans in walmart, danced to the shitty pop songs on the radio in Brenda’s car, and posed with a weird turkey sculpture in a antique shop. By the end of they day, Newt didn’t think he’d ever had so much fun, and wasn’t sure he ever would again. His face hurt from smiling, his stomach ached from laughter, and his heart soared.

He got a text from Alby saying “heard your friends had a nice surprise for you… happy birthday newt <3”. Newt smiled at that too, and quickly typed out a reply, thanking Alby for everything. It was technically all his fault that he’d had such a spectacular birthday.

Later, when the sun had set in the early fall-turning-winter evening, Minho drove Newt home. They were all tired out from a good day, recapping the day’s events together, tired laughter filling the car with a soft, full air. Rock music played quietly on the radio, streetlights illuminated the road, a soft atmosphere filling the night.

When they pulled into Newt’s driveway, he noticed his dad’s car wasn’t there. _Good._ Minho walked him to the door, the chill night air giving warning of the oncoming winter. Newt stopped at the door.

“Hey, you wanna come in?” He gave a slightly sheepish grin in Minho’s direction. Minho returned it, scratching the back of his neck.

“Sure.”

Newt lead Minho through his house and to the kitchen area. Minho looked around while Newt set down his stuff. Newt knew his bare, sparsely furnished house wasn’t your average suburban home, but he felt safe sharing it with Minho. He knew he wouldn’t judge him. He plugged his phone into his cheap speaker and looked through his “late night vibes” playlist. He settled on Heroes by David Bowie, an absolute fucking bop if you ask him. Minho gasped.

“I love this song!” He said.

“Yeah? Me too,” Newt walked over to him. Minho started swaying to the music, and they just talked. Talked about everything and nothing. Newt noticed how easy it was to be with Minho. They could just talk about anything, and it was comfortable and easy. At one point they must have started dancing together, because before he knew it, Newt found himself with his arms draped over Minho’s shoulders and Minho’s were wrapped around his waist. Newt realized he felt at home with Minho. He didn’t think he’d ever felt so strongly like that before.

“Thank you, for today,” he said quietly. “I really enjoyed it.”

“Of course,” Minho replied with a soft smile that made Newt’s heart melt. “Anything to make you smile like that.” _That _certainly made him smile, and blush too as he averted his gaze down to his feet. Minho’s hand moved to Newt’s chin and tilted his head up so they were eye to eye again. Newt’s heart leapt out of his chest and his stomach somersaulted. Minho’s eyes flitted about his face, deep and curious.

“Minho,” Newt just barely whispered it, but it sounded loud as the song faded out slowly. Minho’s thumb brushed feather light over Newt’s bottom lip, but it was enough to send a jolt like lightning through his body, eyelids fluttering as he fought to keep them open.

"You're so beautiful," Minho breathed, and Newt felt weak in the knees, unable to focus on anything but the boy in front of him who had just called him beautiful. He didn't think anyone had ever called him that before. The way Minho was looking at him made the breath catch in his throat, and he swore he would’ve been content to drown in his eyes right there. Then, Minho suddenly seemed to remember himself. His eyes widened slightly and he pulled his hand away.

“I-I’m sorry, I-“ Newt cut him off by closing the gap between them and pressing his lips against Minho’s. Minho tensed up, but then almost immediately relaxed and kissed him back, bringing his hand forward again to rest on Newt’s jaw. Minho’s lips were soft against his, fingers warm and gentle on his face. Newt reveled in the way he felt in that moment, soft and warm and light and _Minho_. They pulled away, and it took him a second before he could open his eyes again. Minho’s face was still just inches from his, and he could feel the electricity in the air between them.

Suddenly another song began playing very loudly, making both boys jump out of their skin, as well as totally ruining the moment. Newt quickly went over and turned off the music, then turned to face Minho again. They stared at each other for a second before bursting into laughter. Minho doubled over, clutching his stomach, while Newt leaned back on the counter to support himself and stay upright. They eventually calmed down enough to function normally after what felt like a full minute of belly-laughing. Newt wiped away a stray tear and looked at his friend who was righting himself, still smiling with leftover giggles.

“I should probably get going,” Minho commented, though he didn’t look like he wanted to leave.

“Yeah, it’s late,” Newt replied while they shared a look of fondness, still smiling at each other.

Newt walked him to the door Minho stepped outside.

“Thanks for having me over for a bit,” he said.

“Of course,” Newt answered. “Thanks for taking me out today.”

“No problem.” Another moment passed of just staring at each other, unable to do anything other than grin stupidly. Minho broke the daze, starting to make his way back to his car.

“Okay, good night,” he said awkwardly, waving as he walked down the short path back to the street.

“Good night, Minho,” Newt chuckled, leaning against the doorway. Minho looked back one more time before getting into his car. Newt watched him go, biting his lip, immediately longing to be close to him again. Once Minho’s car had driven away, he closed the door, then leaned back against it with a dreamy sigh. He touched his lips, thinking about how he’d kissed Minho, and they stretched into a smile unprompted again. Newt giggled like a schoolgirl. That boy was going to be the death of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They kissed!!!!! Finally!!!!  
I had lots of fun writing this one. It's pretty short, but very sweet. Next one's gonna be fun too.  
Thanks for sticking around! I'll try to update every weekend from here on out. Thanks for reading!


	13. The Way You Look Tonight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minho takes Newt to the concert.

Minho took a deep breath as he stood in front of Newt’s door. He didn’t know why he was so nervous, it wasn’t like Newt _didn’t _like him, it was just that nothing was quite confirmed. Maybe that was it. Things were still up in the air. The past few weeks had been slightly awkward, but much more _awesome_. It was almost like he and Newt were a couple, they just weren’t really official yet. At lunch, they’d sat close enough that their knees were touching, and Newt had hooked his ankle around his, that was something right? And one time when Newt had biked by during track practice he’d unabashedly wolf whistled at him when he bent over to stretch. One time Minho had been teasing him about his weedy build and then Newt had actually _lifted _him into the air to prove he was strong and then refused to put him down for a whole minute. And they’d kind of been flirting? Minho wasn’t quite sure if it could be considered flirting, but Thomas was quite insistent that it was.

But the thing that meant the most to Minho was when Newt had asked him to take him to the Cage the Elephant concert. Sure, it had been Minho’s idea to get him the tickets, but he got him two so he could pick _anyone_. Literally anyone, and yet he’d chosen him. But surely it’s not _that _big of a deal, right? Minho wasn’t sure, but he tried to just ignore it so he could muster up the courage to just _knock on the friggin’ door already_.

Minho raised a fist and knocked three times. _That’s a good amount of times to knock, right?_ He rolled his eyes at himself. Why would he worry about something stupid like how many times to knock? Before he could criticize himself further, Newt answered the door. Minho immediately noticed how radiant his expression was, cheeks slightly flushed, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned, shoulders not totally relaxed. As soon as he saw him, he could feel how excited he was. _Cute._

“Hi,” Newt said, sounding a little out of breath.

“Hey.” Minho couldn’t help but grin at him. Newt not-so-subtly eyed him up and down and moistened his lips. Minho felt a flounce of butterflies in his stomach.

“What’re you looking at?” He jibed playfully. Newt’s eyes widened for a second and his eyes shot down to the ground.

“Uh, nothing.” He scratched the back of his neck bashfully.

“I’m just messing with you,” Minho chuckled. “You ready to go?”

“Yeah.” Newt looked up again and a small smile returned to his face. _Why is he so fucking adorable?_

“Great, let’s go!”

Minho drove his motorcycle to the venue the concert was being held, then had to park frustratingly far away as usual. Newt didn’t seem to care though as he hopped off the bike, a giddy grin still plastered to his face. Minho couldn’t help but laugh a bit.

“Someone’s excited,” he commented.

“Sorry, I’ve just never been to a concert before,” Newt replied, scratching the back of his neck again.

“Nah, don’t be sorry. It’s cute.” Minho slung an arm around the other boy’s shoulders and began leading him toward the venue.

“Cute? Me?” Newt teased, leaning into him, but Minho didn’t miss the blush dusting his cheeks.

“Yup. Adorable.”

They piled into the large, smoky room along with many others and Minho pulled Newt with him as he rushed to the front, towards the stage. They’d gotten their pretty early, so they were able to grab pretty good spots, not too many heads to look over. Newt bounced on his toes excitedly. Minho chuckled.

“These guys must be pretty good, huh?” He said.

“Oh my god, you have no idea,” Newt replied. He sounded like a middle school girl, only making Minho laugh more. He looked around the venue with curiosity, wonder lighting up his eyes. Minho couldn’t help but stare for a bit. _How could you not fall for a beautiful boy like him?_

A chill, biting breeze blew in from the entryway, cutting through the crowd and sending a shiver down Minho’s spine. He rubbed his arms to quell the onslaught of goose bumps.

“You cold?” Newt asked.

“A little,” He admitted. He immediately regretted it when it brought forth a wicked grin on Newt’s lips. Minho raised his eyebrows challengingly. Newt leaned in to his ear and spoke in a low voice one could only describe as _suggestive_-

“I can warm you up.” Well, it certainly did warm him up, to say the least, sending a different kind of shiver down Minho’s spine. He forgot how to breathe. Newt leaned back, biting his lip over a mischievous smile and winked. _He fucking winked._ The nerve. Minho stuttered stupidly, trying not to combust. _The audacity-_

The doors closed and the lights went down. People started cheering.

“It’s starting!” Newt gasped and shook Minho’s arm, suddenly focused on the concert and not making sure Minho didn’t get through his junior year.

Minho felt like he was floating for the rest of the night. The concert lasted an eternity, but it passed by way too fast. The flashing lights lingered in Newt’s eyes, sparkling as he continued to laugh while they made their way back to Minho’s motorbike. He loved Newt’s eyes, so deep and full of life and color, carrying the stars with them wherever he went. It was almost like he was in a trance as Minho drove them back, the only solid thing being Newt’s arms looped tightly around his waist, chest flush with his back, laughter still echoing through his head, bouncing against the walls of his mind.

Before he knew it, he was rolling up to Newt’s house and pulling off his helmet. He swung a leg over the seat of his bike and turned to see the same radiant smile as Newt shook out his hair. The boy caught Minho’s eyes, then looked down sheepishly and rolled his lips in, tucking a stray hair behind his ear that had been knocked into disarray. Minho couldn’t help but smile, it was so adorable. _I think I love him._

He walked Newt to the door like he had so many times before, and they turned to face each other.

“Thanks for tonight,” Newt said, giving another sweet smile that made Minho’s heart sing like something out of a cheesy romance novel. “It was probably one of the best nights of my life.”

“You know what,” Minho took a step towards him, feeling a little bold, “me too.” Newt shifted his weight so they were mere inches apart and Minho could see the faint freckles sprinkled over his nose. Newt’s eyes flicked to his lips then back up and he licked his own. Minho’s breath caught in his throat. God, he wanted to kiss him so bad.

“N-Newt…” He took Newt’s hand in his own, lightly fiddling with his fingers. “I, uh…” Newt watched him curiously lips parted slightly. Minho stared at the ground, gaze flicking up to the other boy’s face every now and again. “Uh- shit,” he stuttered. He could barely breath, what with his heart threatening to rip right out of his chest and all. “I-I-“

“Minho,” Newt cut him off – _god_, he loved the way he said his name - and took his face in his hands, gentle and soft. “Just kiss me.”

So Minho didn’t waste any more time and closed the distance between them, Newt pulling him with just as much impatience. The butterflies in his stomach started going crazy and a wave like static electricity moved over his skin from head to toe. He put his hands on Newt’s hips, partially just to make sure he didn’t fall over. Their lips parted for a second only to collide again, Newt pulling him deeper this time, tilting his head more. Minho broke away for a second again and lifted Newt off the ground. Newt made a surprised noise (_adorable_) which Minho muffled with another kiss and Newt instinctively wrapped his legs around him. Minho swore he could’ve done this all night. He bit Newt’s lip lightly causing him to let out a small, breathy moan that sent a fresh jolt through Minho’s body. Newt’s hands moved to his hair and his mouth moved against his and yeah he could definitely do this all night.

Eventually they broke apart, breathing heavily, and Minho’s entire world was the boy in his arms. Newt unhooked his legs from Minho’s body and he lowered him back to the ground. They stood there, close, staring at each other, and then started smiling. Minho let out a breathy laugh, and Newt giggled a bit, looking down. He slid his hands down to Minho’s shoulders, then down his arms until he held his hands. He looked back up at him, biting his lip over a sheepish smile.

“So,” Minho started, “can I call you my boyfriend?” He grinned like a schoolgirl.

“Definitely,” Newt replied with just as much silly giddiness. They took another second to just stare at each other and smile like a couple of love-struck idiots before Minho spoke up again.

“It’s late, I should probably get going.”

“Yeah,” Newt sighed. “Thanks again.”

“Of course.” Minho cupped Newt’s cheek for a final pause, then gave him a quick peck on the nose. Before he could move away though, Newt grabbed his shirt and tugged him back in for one last, sloppy kiss. Minho laughed when he released him and began stepping away.

“See you tomorrow,” he said.

“Yeah, see ya.” Newt dug his key out of his pocket and started unlocking his door. Minho turned to look at him again when he got on his bike and saw Newt watching him from his doorway. He waved and Newt chuckled and waved back. Minho shoved his helmet on and started up his bike, thinking he’s probably the luckiest person in the world. He drove away feeling like he was flying, and crashed into bed later that night still with the sensation of floating in the air. He sighed happily and stared at the ceiling with a dumb smile.

_ I love him._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YAY they're finally boyfriends :3  
It's 1 am I was supposed to go to bed 3 hours ago lol this was more important tho sorry mom  
I'm very happy with how this is coming along, and I will continue to work on it when I can. Busy season is in full swing now for me, so free time is a rare delicacy.   
Thanks for reading! I hope you're enjoying this as much as I am, haha.  
Next time we get some more of the gang's adventures...


	14. Let it Snow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang is back at it again as the year comes to a close.

Newt had learned that Minho’s primary love language was definitely touch. He wasn’t a touchy person with people he wasn’t really close with, Brenda had told him once (she also showed affection physically), but Newt noticed that he did lots of little things like putting a hand on a friend’s arm or shoulder, give high fives, or offering a hug when someone was down. He wasn’t a super touchy person, but it seemed like he was always finding a way to have physical contact with Newt (not that he was complaining). He’d always put an arm around his waist or shoulders, grab his hand, hook his ankle around his, ruffle his hair, or some other fond expression. If it was anyone else, Newt might’ve been annoyed, but he found himself actually looking forward to it when it came to the boy with a lopsided smile, carefree attitude, and _fucking perfect hair_.

He’d also discovered that Minho could be very smooth when he wanted to be. Although there were times when he’d stumble over his words and grow bright red (which was adorable), he was quick-witted and _very charming_, Newt thought (although he’s always charming without even trying). Since they’d “officially” gotten together, he’d do things like plant a kiss on Newt’s head or cheek before leaving for class, or complimenting him randomly with a sweet smile. Sometimes he’d even whisper something _not exactly school appropriate _in his ear and trail his fingers down his arm before they parted, sending shivers all over Newt’s body and _absolutely driving him crazy._ One time, they’d been walking around during their free period and at a more obscure part of the school, Minho had pinned him against a wall and kissed him like his life depended on it, then left him at his next class out of breath and in a daze. Newt couldn’t focus for the rest of the day, head filled with the thought of Minho’s tongue in his mouth instead of polynomial functions. As great as it was having a boyfriend, it could also be _fucking distracting_.

Newt never really celebrated Christmas, or Hanukah, or any other winter holidays. He wanted to after seeing so many heartwarming movies but never actually experiencing it, but his dad was never around, and he never had any other family or friends to spend it with. Before, he would’ve spent it with his friends, but they were celebrating with their families. The end of the year was supposed to be fun, joyful, full of stockings, warm hats, gifts, hot cocoa, kisses, and smiles. But for him, it had always just been pretty depressing. This year though, it was different.

The temperatures dropped more as the final month of the year progressed, bringing all kinds of festivities with it. Colorful lights lined the shops in town and mistletoe was under at least half of the doorways. Chuck had gotten a nearly infinite supply of candy canes and was giving them out to people at school and Thomas just used the phrase “ho ho ho” uncreatively to call everyone a ho. Teresa and Brenda got caught under the mistletoe, and Teresa had flushed tomato-red when Brenda just shrugged and pulled her into a brief kiss.

After school that day, the gang went out to treat themselves to some overpriced peppermint themed coffee and hot cocoa, bundled up in scarves, hats, and gloves. They belted out Mariah Carrie’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” when it played on the radio in the car. They entered the local coffee shop that afternoon, cheeks and noses reddened from the cold, and sat at a table in the corner by the windows while they waited. Newt took off his gloves as he settled in, Minho to his right. He took Minho’s hand and intertwined their fingers, immediately noticing they felt cold as ice.

“Jesus, Minho, your hands are so cold!” He frowned and clutched Minho’s hand in both of his. “You should’ve worn gloves, dummy.”

“Nah, they’re fine,” Minho made a dismissive gesture with his other hand, but Newt just furrowed his brow deeper.

“No, you need to stay warm,” he insisted. “Where gloves next time, you imbecile.”

“Ouch, harsh, babe,” Minho teased.

“Oh, hush, you big baby.” Newt bumped his shoulder with his own.

“God, you guys are like an old married couple, gross,” Thomas commented from across the table. Brenda made an exaggerated “ew” noise next to him. Minho just laughed and Newt stuck his tongue out back at Thomas. Teresa and Chuck came over balancing all their drinks in their hands precariously.

They talked and laughed and complained about school projects and finals. Thomas was as energetic as ever, gesturing wildly and randomly sipping his hot cocoa, seeming to always have something to say. Meanwhile, Teresa looked like she might fall asleep on Brenda’s shoulder. Suddenly, Chuck gasped.

“Guys, look!” He pointed out the window. “It’s snowing!” Teresa woke right up, and they all strained to look. White flakes floated slowly down from the gray sky and Newt could already see splotches where they were sticking to the ground. The group sprang to action, abandoning their seats and drinks, not bothering to put their coats and gloves back on.

They ran outside into the street. They whooped and yelled with excitement and Chuck stuck out his tongue to try and catch some snow. Newt stuck his hands out and looked up. The peaceful white flecks drifted down toward him, falling without a care in the world. He heard his friends laughing and smiled as snowflakes dropped on his face. He looked down and saw Thomas, Teresa and Chuck posing for a photo, Brenda holding up her phone to take it. He turned his head and saw that Minho was looking at him instead of the sky, a small, fond smile on his face, eyes full of love. Newt felt his heart melt right inside his chest.

“What?” He asked.

“Nothing,” Minho answered, walking to him and taking his hands. “Just you.”

“You’re such a sap,” Newt chuckled, returning his boyfriend’s gaze. Minho just hummed in reply, leaning in for a brief kiss. Newt could’ve stayed in that perfect moment forever. The shouts of children playing in the snow echoing down the road, the lively, colorful strip dimmed by gray skies and white snow, his friends’ cheerful laughter, and Minho. _Minho_. He was head over heels. They pulled away and Minho just stared right at him again with a look so warm you’d think it was the cause of climate change.

The gang went back inside the coffee shop before they got too cold and finished their drinks, snow melting in their hair. Newt’s phone pinged, and he saw a text from Brenda containing a photo of him and Minho kissing in the snow. She must’ve taken it without them noticing, since she’d already had her phone out to take pictures of the others. He shot her a look and she just shrugged. He rolled his eyes, pretending to be annoyed, but found himself loving the photo instead. It wasn’t very good quality, a little fuzzy, but there they were. He made it his phone’s background.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love my gay babies


End file.
